UC-NRLF 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

PRESENTED  BY 

PROF.  CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 
MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


CHARLES  DARWIN. 


WHAT 


MR.  DARWIN 


SAW 


IN  HIS  YOYAGE  ROUND  THE  WORLD 
IN  THE  SHIP  "BEAGLE" 


THE  "  BEAGLE "  LAID  ASHORE  AT  THE  MOUTH  OF  THE  SANTA  CRUZ 


NEW    YORK 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE 

1880 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1879,  by 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


\\ 


ft) 

©rtat  Name  of 

Hattoin 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN   SAW  IN  HIS  VOYAGE 

ROUND   THE  WORLD   IN  THE 

SHIP  "BEAGLE" 


FOR  PARENTS. 


design  of  this  book  can  be  stated  in  a  few  words, 
namely,  to  interest  children  in  the  study  of  natural  his- 
tory, and  of  physical  and  political  geography. 

I.  It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  child  indifferent  to  stories 
about  animals.  The  number  of  books,  both  systematic  and 
unsystematic,  to  which  this  fact  has  given  rise  is  very  large ; 
but  the  enormous  progress  in  zoological  science  has  been 
fatal  to  the  survival  of  most  of  them.  Children  of  a  prior 
generation  had  their  curiosity  about  the  brute  creation  sat- 
isfied by  White's  Selbome  and  Bewick's  Quadrupeds;  and 
the  former  classic  is  even  now  reprinted  in  popular  editions, 
with  illustrations  which  may  and  do  attract  the  young.  But 
adults,  and  even  scholars,  alone  can  enjoy  Selborne  to  the 
full;  while  not  merely  is  the  Quadrupeds  out  of  print  and 
difficult  to  procure,  but  its  text  is  too  antiquated  to  be  use- 
fully put  before  a  child.  Its  incomparable  illustrations  de- 
serve a  perpetual  lease  of  life.  The  first  section  of  the  pres- 
ent compilation,  entitled  "Animals,"  though  written  more 


10  FOR  PARENTS. 

than  forty  years  ago,  will,  it  is  confidently  believed,  be  as 
fresh  and  trustworthy  forty  years  hence  as  it  is  now. 

The  compiler  has  thought  it  an  advantage  to  connect 
stories  about  a  great  variety  of  animals  with  one  person,  and 
he  an  observer  of  such  credibility  and  authority  that  little 
if  anything  that  was  learned  of  him  would  have  to  be  un- 
learned. Mr.  Darwin  is,  of  course,  pre-eminently  such  an  ob- 
server. On  the  other  hand,  by  carefully  connecting  these 
stories  also  with  the  places  on  the  earth's  surface  where  the 
animals  were  studied,  a  correct  notion  will  be  had  of  the 
distribution  of  the  animal  kingdom,  with  a  corresponding 
insight  into  the  geography  of  the  globe  in  its  broadest  sense. 
Finally,  by  placing  these  stories  first  in  order,  the  attention 
of  the  youngest  readers  is  assured.  No  artificial  grouping 
has  been  attempted. 

II.  Scarcely  inferior  in  interest  to  tales  of  animals   are 
accounts  of  strange  peoples  and  customs,  particularly  of  sav- 
age and  barbarous  life.     The  section   entitled  "  Man,"  there- 
fore, should  not  disappoint  the  youthful  reader. 

III.  Closely  allied  with  the  foregoing  are  the  contents  of 
the  section  entitled  (for  want  of  a  better  designation)  "  Ge- 
ography," which  consists  partly  of  descriptions  of  cities,  the 
habitations   of  man,  partly  of  descriptions  of  rivers,  moun- 
tains, valleys,  plains,  and  other  physical  features  of  the  coun- 
tries visited  by  Mr.  Darwin. 

IV.  Finally,  in  the  section  styled  "  Nature  "  will  be  found 
some  account  of  the  grander  terrestrial  processes  and  phe- 


FOR  PARENTS.  11 

nomena,  with  other  matters  which  a  strict  classification  might 
have  placed  in  the  preceding  section,  but  which  were  inten- 
tionally reserved  till  the  last,  as  being  least  easy  to  compre- 
hend. But  experience  may  show  that,  on  the  whole,  this  is 
far  from  being  the  least  interesting  of  the  four. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  will  be  perceived  that,  if  the 
attempted  gradation  has  been  successful,  this  book  recom- 
mends itself  to  every  member  of  a  household,  from  the 
youngest  to  the  oldest.  A  child  may  safely  be  left  to  read 
as  far  as  he  is  interested,  or  as  far  as  he  can  understand  with 
facility,  in  the  certainty  that  each  year  afterward  he  will 
push  his  explorations  a  little  further,  till  the  end  has  been 
reached  and  the  whole  is  within  his  grasp.  Meantime,  par- 
ents can  read  aloud  selected  passages  even  in  advance  of 
the  child's  progress.  Nor  does  the  compiler  seem  to  him- 
self to  overrate  his  collection  of  excerpts  wrhen  he  suggests 
its  use  as  a  graded  reader  in  schools.  Its  capacity  for  rhe- 
torical exercise  will  be  found  greater  than  might  have  been 
expected,  and  those  who  have  been  led  to  believe  Mr.  Darwin 
a  materialist  will  discover  here  eloquent  expression  of  human 
sympathies  as  broad  as  those  immortalized  by  the  old  Eo- 
man  comedian — "  Homo  sum,  humani  nil  a  me  alienum  puto." 

Some  liberties  have  been  taken  with  the  original  text. 
Notices  of  the  same  animal,  or  place,  or  nationality,  or  phe- 
nomenon, in  different  parts  of  the  narrative,  have  been  gath- 
ered together  and  pieced  where  necessary;  and  (always  after 
much  hesitation)  a  more  simple  word  or  phrase  has  occasion- 


12  FOR  PARENTS. 

ally  been  substituted  for  a  less  simple.  But  the  amount  of 
these  additions  and  alterations  is  relatively  so  slight  that  it 
is  true  to  say  that  Mr.  Darwin  speaks  throughout.  A  few 
of  the  illustrations  are  borrowed  from  the  original  narrative 
and  from  its  sister  reports;  but  by  far  the  greater  number 
have  been  derived  from  other  sources,  and  all  with  a  view 
to  conveying  correct  information.  The  maps  interspersed 
with  the  text  or  placed  at  the  end  of  the  volume  contain 
every  significant  geographical  name  mentioned  in  the  text. 

After  all,  it  is  hoped  that  every  one  who  here  learns  for 
the  first  time  a  small  portion  of  "  what  Mr.  Darwin  saw," 
on  his  memorable  first  journey  abroad,  will  sooner  or  later 
betake  himself  to  the  delightful  and  ever  wonderful  una- 
bridged report  of  the  most  momentous  voyage  round  the 
world  since  Columbus. 

NEW  YORK,  October  1, 1879. 


FOR   CHILDREN. 


TWEKYBODY  has  eyes,  but,  as  you  know,  some  people 

m    1 

are  blind ;  and  many  of  those  who  are  not  blind  wear 
glasses,  and  cannot  see  without  them.  But  even  those  whose 
eyes  are  good  and  strong  do  not  all  see  alike.  In  a  roomful 
of  people,  you  would  be  sure  to  see  your  father  and  mother; 
and  if  all  the  rest  were  strangers  to  you,  you  would  probably 
not  notice  a  good  many  of  them.  Or  if  you  were  just  learn- 
ing to  read,  and  were  shown  a  printed  page,  you  would  see 
the  words  you  know  how  to  spell,  and  would  pay  very  lit- 
tle attention  to  most  of  the  others.  If  we  should  go  search- 
ing for  spring  flowers,  I,  who  know  what  anemones  and 
hepaticas  are  like,  should  find  more  than  you  who  had  never 
seen  them  before.  And  if  our  walk  was  among  woods,  some 
would  come  home  remembering  only  that  they  had  seen 
trees;  others,  that  they  had  seen  pines  and  oaks;  and  I 
alone,  perhaps,  that  I  had  seen  birches  and  ash -trees  too. 
And  again,  if  our  excursion  was  by  roads  you  had  never 
travelled  before,  some  of  you  could  next  time  go  the  same 


14 


FOR   CHILDREN. 


way  without  my  showing  yon,  while  others  would  feel  lost 
at  the  first  turn. 


*«..««  &  Str*ther,,-N.  T. 


So  those  see  best  who  know  the  most,  or  who  naturally 
take    notice    of  new   things.     Now   Charles   Darwin,  about 


FOR   CHILDREN.  17 

whom  I  am  going  to  tell  you  presently,  is  one  of  the  best 
seers  that  ever  lived,  partly  because  he  had  learned  so  well 
what  to  look  for,  and  partly  because  nothing  escaped  his 
eyes.  Before  he  himself  travelled,  he  read  a  great  many 
books  of  travel,  and  he  seemed  to  remember  at  the  right 
time  just  what  it  was  useful  for  him  to  remember.  But 
before  that,  he  had  trained  himself,  with  the  aid  of  the  mi- 
croscope, to  observe  little  things;  and  people  have  not  yet 
got  over  their  astonishment  at  learning  how  many  important 
things  he  thus  saw  which  they  had  never  seen,  or  had  seen 
without  thinking  them  of  any  consequence.  And  now  all 
the  world  looks  at  things  differently  from  what  it  used  to 
before  he  showed  it  how.  How  he  saw  things  you  will 
partly  see  by  reading  the  following  pages,  taken  from  his 
account  of  the  voyage  of  the  Beagle. 

Charles  Darwin  (whose  full  name  is  Charles  Robert  Dar- 
win) was  born  at  Shrewsbury,  a  famous  town  in  Shropshire, 
England,  February  12,  1809.  His  father  was  Dr.  Robert 
Waring  Darwin ;  his  grandfather  Dr.  Erasmus  Darwin,  also 
a  distinguished  naturalist.  His  mother's  father  was  Josiah 
Wedgwood,  the  celebrated  manufacturer  of  pottery,  some 
of  which  goes  by  his  name.  Mr.  Darwin  was  educated,  first 
at  Shrewsbury,  then  at  the  University  of  Edinburgh,  and 
finally  at  Christ's  College,  Cambridge.  The  end  of  his 
schooling  was  in  1831.  Then  Captain  Fitzroy  invited  him 
to  join  the  Beagle  as  naturalist,  and  he  sailed  from  Devon- 
port,  England,  December  27,  1831,  not  to  return  till  October 

2 


18 


FOR   CHILDREN. 


22,  1836.  The  object  of  the  expedition  was  principally  "to 
complete  the  survey  of  Patagonia  and  Tierra  del  Fuego,  com- 
menced under  Captain  King  in  1826  to  1830,  and  to  survey 


THE   KINGDOM   OF   .3ESOP. 


the  shores  of  Chili,  Peru,  and  of  some  islands  in  the  Pacific," 
besides  sailing  round  the  world.  The  first  Christmas -day 
spent  away  from  England  (1832)  was  at  St.  Martin's  Cove, 


FOR   CHILDREN.  19 

near  Cape  Horn;  the  second  (1833),  at  Port  Desire,  in  Pat- 
agonia; the  third  (1834),  in  a  wild  harbor  in  the  peninsula 
of  Tres  Montes,  also  in  Patagonia;  the  fourth  and  last  (1835), 
at  the  Bay  of  Islands,  New  Zealand.  The  map  facing  page 
17  will  show  you  the  course  of  the  expedition. 

Before  beginning  to  read  "What  Mr.  Darwin  Saw,"  try 
how  good  a  seer  you  are  by  counting  the  various  animals 
shown  in  the  wood-engraving  on  the  opposite  page,  by  the 
great  Thomas  Bewick. 


CONTENTS. 


PREFACE  FOR  PARENTS Page      9 

PREFACE  FOR  CHILDREN   .  13 


ANIMALS. 


The  Horse Page  29 

The  Mule 33 

The  Ox 34 

The  Dog    ........  37 

The  Monkey 38 

The  Guanaco 41 

The  Puma 44 

The  Jaguar 46 

The  Bizcacha 48 

The  Seal -  .     .  50 

The  Whale 52 

The  Porpoise  ........  53 

The  Lizard 56 

The  Tortoise  .  60 


The  Toad 

The  Cuttle-fish 

The  Cormorant 

The  Penguin 

The  Condor 

The  Ostrich 

The  Casarita  .    ' 

Tame  Birds  on  Desert  Islands 

The  Grasshopper 

The  Locust 

The  Ant 

The  Wasp 

The  Spider 

The  Crab    . 


63 
64 
65 
65 
66 
71 
74 
75 
81 
81 
83 
84 
85 
86 


MAN. 


The  Savage     .......     92 

The  Fuegian 93 

The  Patagonian 104 

The  Indian  of  the  Pampas     .     .105 

The  Negro Ill 

The  Gaucho  .116 


The  La  Platan 124 

The  Uruguayan 125 

The  Chileno 128 

The  Spaniard 132 

The  Tahitian 135 

The  Australian  Negro  .     .     .     .138 


22 


CONTENTS. 


GEOGRAPHY. 


Uruguay Page  143 

River  Parana 144 

Plate  River 146 

La  Plata 146 

The  Pampas 149 

Tierra  del  Fuego 151 

Chiloe    .  .153 


Valparaiso Page  1 54 

Quillota 157 

Valdivia 158 

Chile 159 

Lima 159 

Tahiti 163 

New  South  Wales  .  164 


NATURE. 


Forests 170 

The  Kauri  Pine 171 

The  Beech 172 

The  Kelp 172 

Mountains 175 

Fossil  Trees    ,  .178 


An  Old  Sea-bed   .     ...     .     .182 

Earthquakes 183 

Rainfall 193 

Hibernation  of  Animals      .     .     .195 

The  Ocean 196 

Lagoon  Islands 197 


INDEX  OF  NOTABLE  PERSONS 205 

GENERAL  INDEX  .  219 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

1.  CHARLES  DARWIN Frontispiece 

2.  THE  "BEAGLE"  BEACHED  AT  THE  MOUTH  OF  THE  SANTA  CRUZ  Vignette 

3.  THE  KINGDOM  OF  ^Esor  (AFTER  BEWICK) 18 

4.  ANCIENT  GREEK  HORSE-RACE 30 

5.  THRESHING  GRAIN  WITH  HORSES  IN  ARMENIA  (AsiA  MINOR)    ...  31 

6.  FOSSIL    REMAINS    OF    A    MEGATHERIUM 32 

7.  FOSSIL  REMAINS  OF  AN  ELEPHANT 32 

8.  GAUCHOS  BRANDING  CATTLE  ON  AN  ESTANCIA 35 

9.  SHEPHERD-DOG 37 

10.  MONKEY  WITH  PREHENSILE  TAIL 38 

11.  TOUCANS 41 

12.  GUANACO  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH) 42 

13.  PUMA .45 

14.  JAGUAR 46 

15.  CAPIBARA 46 

16.  AUSTRALIAN  BOWER  BIRD 49 

17.  SEAL 51 

18.  TERN 51 

19.  GULL 51 

20.  SEA-LION  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH) 52 

21.  PHOSPHORESCENT  SEA 55 

22.  CACTUS  GROWTH  IN  THE  DESERTS  OF  UTAH 59 

23.  TORTOISE 61 

24.  CUTTLE-FISH 64 

25.  CORMORANT 65 

26.  CONDOR 67 

27.  SKELETON  OF  AN  OSTRICH .72 


24  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

28.  ST.  PAUL'S  ROCKS 75 

29.  NODDY 76 

30.  FLYING-FISH 77 

31.  HEAD  OF  A  FLY-CATCHER 78 

32.  TURTLE-DOVE 78 

33.  "EARTH"  OF  THE  Fox 79 

34.  WILD  GOOSE 80 

35.  OWL 80 

36.  GRASSHOPPER 81 

37.  LOCUSTS 82 

38.  ARMY  OF  ANTS .83 

39.  WASP  AND  SPIDER 85 

40.  SPIDER 86 

41.  ROBBER-CRAB 87 

42.  LION  IN  HIS  DESERT  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH) 92 

43.  RHINOCEROS  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH) 93 

44.  NORTH  AMERICAN  INDIAN — WINNEBAGO  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH)  .     .     95 

45.  SOUTH  AFRICAN  KAFFIR 97 

46.  AUSTRALIAN  ABORIGINES 98 

47.  FUEGIAN  FEAST 100 

48.  SOUTH  SEA  ISLANDERS 103 

49.  BUSHMEN  OF  SOUTH  AFRICA 104 

50.  LENGUA  INDIANS  (PLATE  RIVER  BASIN) 106 

51.  SOLDIERS  OF  GENERAL  ROSAS 107 

52.  POST  ON  THE  PAMPAS 112 

53.  PERNAMBUCO 114 

54.  GAUCHO 117 

55.  NOT  TO  BE  THROWN .119 

56.  USE  OF  LAZO  AND  BOLAS 122 

57.  AGOUTI 124 

58.  ESTANCIERO 127 

59.  TANATERO — ORE-CARRIER 131 

60.  TAMARIND-TREE  AT  POINT  VENUS,  TAHITI,  SOCIETY  ISLANDS    .     .     .133 

61.  NATIVE  BAMBOO  HOUSE,  TAHITI 136 

62.  FIRE  BY  FRICTION .     .     ..-.•»•    .     .     .137 

63.  BANANA  LEAVES  AND  FRUIT-STALK.     .     ....     .     .  '.     .     .     .137 

64.  BANANA  BLOSSOM 138 

65.  AUSTRALIAN  NEGRO  .  139 


ILL  US  TEA  TIONS.  25 

PAGE 

66.  KANGAROO 139 

67.  AUSTRALIAN  "CORROBERY" 140 

68.  OLIVE  BRANCH 143 

69.  MONTEVIDEO,  FROM  THE  SEA 144 

70.  MONTEVIDEO,  LOOKING  TOWARD  THE  HARBOR 146 

71.  OX-CART  OF  THE  PAMPAS 148 

72.  MOUNTAINS  AND  GLACIERS  IN  MAGELLAN  STRAIT 152 

73.  CUSTOMS  GUARD-HOUSE,  VALPARAISO,  CHILE 154 

74.  PLAZA  DE  LA  CONSTITUCION,  SANTA  CRUZ 155 

75.  PEAK  OF  TENERIFFE 156 

76.  ORANGE-GROVES 157 

77.  LIMA 161 

78.  FRUIT  OF  THE  BREAD-FRUIT  TREE 163 

79.  AVENUE  OF  PALMS,  BOTANIC  GARDENS,  Rio 164 

80.  TAHITIAN  COAST  SCENERY 165 

81.  CAPE  TOWN,  CAPE  OF  GOOD  HOPE  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH)  .     .     .   166 

82.  EUCALYPTUS-TREE,  OR  BLUE-GUM  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH)  .     .     .     .167 

83.  MANGO  FRUIT     . 171 

84.  CHRISTMAS  HARBOR,  KERGUELEN  LAND 173 

85.  STAR-FISH ' 175 

86.  USPALLATA  PASS 180 

87.  CAPE  FROWARD  (PATAGONIA),  STRAIT  OF  MAGELLAN 182 

88.  ISLAND  OF  JUAN  FERNANDEZ 189 

89.  ROBINSON  CRUSOE 190 

90.  ALBATROSS 197 

91.  VIEW  OF  AN  ATOLL 199 

92.  COCOA-NUT  PALM  (FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH) 200 

93.  CORAL  ARCHITECTS 202 

94.  POLYP 203 

95.  GROWTH  OF  CORAL  ON  A  MOUNTAIN  SLOWLY  SUBSIDING  ....  204 

96.  JOHN  JAMES  AUDUBON 206 

97.  ADMIRAL  JOHN  BYRON 208 

98.  CAPTAIN  JAMES  COOK 209 

99.  KARAKAKOOA  BAY,  THE  SCENE  OF  CAPTAIN  COOK'S  DEATH  .     .     .  210 
100.  CAPTAIN  WILLIAM  DAMPIER     ....  .212 


MAPS  AND  CHARTS. 


PAGE 
I.  ENGLAND  AND  WALES 14 

II.  COURSE  OF  THE  "BEAGLE" 16 

III.  BAY  OF  Rio  DE  JANEIRO ,     ....     39 

IV.  GALAPAGOS  ISLANDS 57 

V.  CANARY  ISLANDS 155 

VI.  LIMA  AND  CALLAO 162 

VII.  ISLAND  OF  JUAN  FERNANDEZ 189 

VIII.  KEELING  ISLAND 198 

IX.  EASTERN  HEMISPHERE 229 

X.  WESTERN  HEMISPHERE 231 

XL  CHILE,  ARGENTINE  CONFEDERATION,  URUGUAY 233 

XII.  PATAGONIA,  TIERRA  DEL  FUEGO 235 


I. 

ANIMALS. 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


THE    HORSE. 


URUGUAY. 


T  ONCE  crossed  the  River  Santa  Lucia  near  its  mouth, 
-*-  and  was  surprised  to  observe  how  easily  our  horses,  al- 
though not  used  to  swim,  passed  over  a  width  of  at  least 
six  hundred  yards.  On  mentioning  this  at  Montevideo,  I 
was  told  that  a  vessel  containing  some  mountebanks  and 
their  horses  being  wrecked  in  the  Plata,  one  horse  swam  seven 
miles  to  the  shore.  In  the  course  of  the  day  I  was  amused 
by  the  skill  with  which  a  Gaucho  forced  a  restive  horse  to 
swim  a  river.  He  stripped  off  all  his  clothes,  and,  jumping  on 
its  back,  rode  into  the  water  till  it  was  out  of  its  depth ;  then, 
slipping  off  over  the  crupper,  he  caught  hold  of  the  tail,  and 
as  often  as  the  horse  turned  round  the  man  frightened  it 
back  by  splashing  water  in  its  face.  As  soon  as  the  horse 
touched  the  bottom  on  the  other  side,  the  man  pulled  him- 
self on,  and  was  firmly  seated,  bridle  in  hand,  before  the 
horse  gained  the  bank.  A  naked  man  on  a  naked  horse  is 
a  fine  spectacle;  I  had  no  idea  how  well  the  two  animals 
suited  each  other.  The  tail  of  a  horse  is  a  very  useful  ap- 


30 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN   SAW 


URUGUAY 


pendage :  I  have  passed  a  river  in  a  boat  with  four  people 
in  it,  which  was  ferried  across  in  the  same  way  as  the  Gau- 
cho.  If  a  man  and  horse  have  to  cross  a  broad  river,  the 


A  NAKED  MAN  ON  A  NAKED  HORSE.   (ANCIENT  GREEK  HORSE-RACE.) 

best  plan  is  for  the  man  to  catch  hold  of  the  pommel  or 
mane,  and  help  himself  with  the  other  arm. 

We  were  delayed  crossing  the  Kio  Colorado  by  some 
immense  troops  of  mares,  which  were  swimming  the  river  in 
order  to  follow  a  division  of  troops  into  the  interior.  A 
more  ludicrous  spectacle  I  never  beheld  than  the  hundreds 
and  hundreds  of  heads,  all  directed  one  way,  with  pointed 
ears  and  distended  nostrils,  appearing  just  above  the  water, 
like  a  great  shoal  of  some  amphibious  animal.  Mares'  flesh 
is  the  only  food  which  the  soldiers  have  when  on  an  expe- 
dition. This  gives  them  a  great  facility  of  movement,  for 
the  distance  to  which  horses  can  be  driven  over  these  plains 
is  quite  surprising.  I  have  been  assured  that  an  unloaded 
horse  can  travel  a  hundred  miles  a  day  for  many  days  suc- 
cessively. 

At  an  estancia  (grazing  farm)  near  Las  Vacas  large  num- 
bers of  mares  are  weekly  slaughtered  for  the  sake  of  their 
hides,  although  worth  only  five  paper  dollars  apiece.  It 
seems  at  first  strange  that  it  can  answer  to  kill  mares  for 


THE  HORSE.  31 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


such  a  trifle;  but  as  it  is  thought  ridiculous  in  this  country 
ever  to  break  in  or  ride  a  mare,  they  are  of  no  value  except 
for  breeding.  The  only  thing  for  which  I  ever  saw  mares 
used  was  to  tread  out  wheat  from  the  ear;  for  which  pur- 
pose they  were  driven  round  a  circular  enclosure,  where  the 
wheat-sheaves  were  strewed. 

It  is  a  marvellous  fact  that  in  South  America  a  native 
horse  should  have  lived  and  disappeared,  to  be  succeeded 
in  after-ages  by  the  countless  herds  descended  from  the  few 
introduced  with  the  Spanish  colonists !  As  the  remains  of 
elephants,  mastodons,  horses,  and  hollow -horned  ruminants 
are  found  on  both  sides  of  Behring's  Straits  and  on  the 
plains  of  Siberia,  we  are  led  to  look  to  the  north-western 
side  of  North  America  as  the  former  point  of  communication 
between  the  Old  and  the  so-called  New  World.  And  as  so 
many  species,  both  living  and  extinct,  of  these  same  genera 


THRESHING  CORN  WITH  HORSES  IN  ARMENIA. 

inhabit  and  have  inhabited  the  Old  World,  it  seems  most 
probable    that   the    North    American    elephants,  mastodons, 


32 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


FOSSIL  REMAINS   OF   A  MEGATHERIUM. 


horses,  and  hollow-horned  ruminants  migrated,  on  land  since 
submerged  near  Behring's  Straits,  from  Siberia  into  North 
America,  and  thence,  on  land  since  submerged  in  the  West 


FOSSIL  REMAINS   OF   AN  ELEPHANT. 


THE  MULE.  33 


CHILE, 


Indies,  into  South  America,  where  for  a  time  they  mingled 
with  the  forms  characteristic  of  that  southern  continent,  and 
have  since  become  extinct. 

The  horse  was  first  landed  at  Buenos  Ayres  in  1537,  and 
the  colony  being  then  for  a  time  deserted,  the  horse  ran 
wild.  In  1580,  only  forty-three  years  afterward,  we  hear  of 
them  at  the  Strait  of  Magellan ! 

THE    MULE. 

WHEN  about  half-way  up  the  Portillo  Pass,  we  met  a 
large  party  with  seventy  loaded  mules.  It  was  interesting 
to  hear  the  wild  cries  of  the  muleteers,  and  to  watch  the 
long  descending  string  of  the  animals;  they  appeared  so 
diminutive,  there  being  nothing  but  the  bleak  mountains 
with  which  they  could  be  compared.  The  madrina  (or 
godmother)  is  a  most  important  personage:  she  is  an  old, 
steady  mare,  with  a  little  bell  round  her  neck;  and  wher- 
ever she  goes,  the  mules,  like  good  children,  follow  her.  The 
affection  of  these  animals  for  their  madrinas  saves  infinite 
trouble.  If  several  large  troops  are  turned  into  one  field  to 
graze,  in  the  morning  the  muleteers  have  only  to  lead  the 
madrinas  a  little  apart,  and  tinkle  their  bells ;  and,  although 
there  may  be  two  or  three  hundred  together,  each  mule  im- 
mediately knows  the  bell  of  its  own  madrina,  and  comes  to 
her.  It  is  nearly  impossible  to  lose  an  old  mule;  for  if 
detained  for  several  hours  by  force,  she  will,  by  the  power  of 
smell,  like  a  dog,  track  out  her  companions  (or  rather  the 
madrina,  for,  according  to  the  muleteer,  she  is  the  chief  ob- 

3 


34  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


URUGUAY. 


ject  of  affection.  I  believe  I  am  right,  however,  in  saying 
that  any  animal  with  a  bell  will  serve  as  a  madrina).  In  a 
troop,  each  animal  carries,  on  a  level  road,  a  cargo  weighing 
four  hundred  and  sixteen  pounds,  but  in  a  mountainous  coun- 
try one  hundred  pounds  less;  yet  with  what  delicate,  slim 
limbs,  without  any  proportional  bulk  of  muscle,  these  animals 
support  so  great  a  burden !  The  mule  always  appears  to  me 
a  most  surprising  animal.  That  the  offspring  of  the  horse 
and  the  ass  should  possess  more  reason,  memory,  obstinacy, 
social  affection,  powers  of  muscular  endurance,  and  length 
of  life,  than  either  of  its  parents,  seems  to  indicate  that  art 
has  here  outdone  nature. 


THE    OX. 

THE  chief  trouble  with  an  estancia  (grazing  farm)  is 
driving  the  cattle  twice  a  week  to  a  central  spot,  in  order 
to  make  them  tame  and  to  count  them.  This  latter  opera- 
tion would  be  thought  difficult  where  there  are  ten  or  fif- 
teen thousand  head  together.  It  is  managed  on  the  princi- 
ple that  the  cattle  invariably  divide  themselves  into  little 
troops  (tropillas)  of  from  forty  to  a  hundred.  Each  troop 
is  recognized  by  a  few  peculiarly  marked  animals,  and  its 
number  is  known ;  so  that,  one  being  lost  out  of  ten  thou- 
sand, it  is  perceived  by  its  absence  from  one  of  the  tropi- 
llas. During  a  stormy  night  the  cattle  all  mingle  together, 
but  the  next  morning  the  tropillas  separate  as  before;  so 
that  each  animal  must  know  its  fellow  out  of  ten  thousand 
others. 


THE  DOG.  37 


URUGUAY. 


THE    DOG. 

WHEN  riding,  it  is  a  common  thing  to  meet  a  large 
flock  of  sheep  guarded  by  one  or  two  dogs,  at  the  distance 
of  some  miles  from  any  house  or  man.  I  often  wondered 
how  so  firm  a  friendship  had  been  established.  The  method 
of  education  consists  in  separating  the  puppy,  while  very 
young,  from  its  mother,  and  in  accustoming  it  to  its  future 
companions.  A  ewe  is  held  three  or  four  times  a  day  for 


SHEPHERD-DOG. 


the  little  thing  to  suck,  and  a  nest  of  wool  is  made  for  it  in 
the  sheep  -pen;  at  no  time  is  it  allowed  to  associate  with 
other  dogs,  or  with  the  children  of  the  family.  From  this 
education,  it  has  no  wish  to  leave  the  flock  ;  and  just  as  an- 
other dog  will  defend  its  master,  man,  so  will  these  the  sheep. 
It  is  amusing  to  observe,  when  approaching  a  flock,  how  the 
dog  immediately  advances  barking,  and  the  sheep  all  close 
in  his  rear,  as  if  round  the  oldest  ram.  These  dogs  are  also 
easily  taught  to  bring  home  the  flock  at  a  certain  hour 


38 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


BRAZIL. 


in  the  evening.  Their  most  troublesome  fault,  when  young, 
is  their  desire  of  playing  with  the  sheep ;  for  in  their  sport 
they  sometimes  gallop  the  poor  things  most  unmercifully. 

The  shepherd-dog  comes  to  the  house  every  day  for  some 
meat,  and  as  soon  as  it  is  given  him  he  skulks  away,  as  if 
ashamed  of  himself.  On  these  occasions  the  house-dogs  are 
very  tyrannical,  and  the  least  of  them  will  attack  and  pur- 
sue the  stranger.  The  minute,  however,  the  latter  has  reached 
the  flock,  he  turns  round  and  begins  to  bark,  and  then  all 
the  house-dogs  take  very  quickly  to  their  heels.  In  a  sim- 
ilar manner,  a  whole  pack  of  the  hungry  wild  dogs  will 
scarcely  ever  venture  to  attack  a  flock  guarded  by  even 
one  of  these  faithful  shepherds.  In  this  case  the  shepiierd- 
dog  seems  to  regard  the  sheep  as  its  fellow -brethren,  and 

thus  gains  confidence ; 
and  the  wild  dogs, 
though  knowing  that 
the  individual  sheep  are 
not  dogs,  but  are  good 
to  eat,  yet,  when  seeing 
them  in  a  flock  with  a 
shepherd  -  dog  at  their 
head,  partly  consent  to 
regard  them  as  he  does. 

THE   MONKEY. 


MONKEY  WITH  PREHENSILE   TAIL. 


DUEING  my  stay  at 
Rio  de  Janeiro  I  resided 


BAY  OF 
RIO  DE  JANEIRO 


BmM>ll&8trathm.N.r. 


THE   GUANACO. 


41 


BRAZIL. 


in  a  cottage  at  Botafogo  Bay.  An  old  Portuguese  priest 
took  me  out  to  hunt  with  him.  The  sport  consisted  in 
turning  into  the  cov- 
er a  few  dogs,  and 
then  patiently  wait- 
ing to  fire  at  any 
animal  which  might 
appear.  My  com- 
panion, the  day  be- 
fore, had  shot  two 
large  bearded  mon- 
keys. These  animals 
have  prehensile  tails, 
the  extremity  of 
which,  even  after 
death,  can  support 
the  whole  weight 
of  the  body.  One 
of  them  thus  remained  fast  to  a  branch,  and  it  was  neces- 
sary to  cut  down  a  large  tree  to  procure  it.  This  was 
soon  done,  and  down  came  tree  and  monkey  with  an  awful 
crash.  Our  day's  sport,  besides  the  monkey,  was  confined  to 
some  small  green  parrots  and  a  few  toucans. 


TOUCANS. 


THE    GUANACO. 

THE  guanaco,  or  wild  llama,  is  the  characteristic  quadru- 
ped of  the  plains  of  Patagonia;  it  is  the  South  American 
representative  of  the  camel  of  the  East.  It  is  an  elegant 


42  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


animal  in  a  state  of  nature,  with  a  long  slender  neck  and 
fine  legs.  It  is  very  common  over  the  whole  of  the  tem- 
perate parts  of  the  continent,  as  far  south  as  the  islands 
near  Cape  Horn.  It  generally  lives  in  small  herds  of  from 
half  a  dozen  to  thirty  'in  each ;  but  on  the  banks  of  the 
Santa  Cruz  we  saw  one  herd  which  must  have  contained 
at  least  five  hundred. 

They    are    generally    wild    and    extremely    wary.      The 
sportsman  frequently  receives  the  first  notice  of  their  pres- 


THE   GUANACO. 


ence  by  hearing  from  a  long  distance  their  peculiar  shrill 
neighing  note  of  alarm.  If  he  then  looks  attentively,  he 
will  probably  see  the  herd  standing  in  a  line  on  the  side 
of  some  distant  hill.  On  approaching  nearer,  a  few  more 
squeals  are  given,  and  off  they  set  at  an  apparently  slow, 
but  really  quick  canter,  along  some  narrow  beaten  track  to 
a  neighboring  hill.  If,  however,  by  chance  he  abruptly 
meets  a  single  animal,  or  several  together,  they  will  gener- 


THE  GUANACO.  43 


PATAGONIA. 


ally  stand  motionless  and  intently  gaze  at  him ;  then  per- 
haps move  on  a  few  yards,  turn  round,  and  look  again. 
What  is  the  cause  of  this  difference  in  their  shyness?  Do 
they  mistake  a  man  in  the  distance  for  their  chief  enemy, 
the  puma?  or  does  curiosity  overcome  their  timidity?  That 
they  are  curious  is  certain ;  for  if  a  person  lies  on  the  ground, 
and  plays  strange  antics,  such  as  throwing  up  his  feet  in 
the  air,  they  will  almost  always  approach  by  degrees  to  ex- 
amine him.  It  was  a  trick  repeatedly  practised  by  our 
sportsmen  with  success,  and  it  had,  moreover,  the  advantage 
of  allowing  several  shots  to  be  fired,  which  were  all  taken 
as  parts  of  the  performance.  On  the  mountains  of  Tierra 
del  Fuego  I  have  more  than  once  seen  a  guanaco,  on  being 
approached,  not  only  neigh  and  squeal,  but  prance  and  leap 
about  in  the  most  ridiculous  manner,  apparently  in  defiance, 
as  a  challenge.  These  animals  are  very  easily  tamed,  and 
I  have  seen  some  thus  kept  in  Patagonia  near  a  house, 
though  not  under  any  restraint.  They  are  in  this  state 
very  bold,  and  readily  attack  a  man  by  striking  him  be- 
hind with  both  knees.  The  wild  guanacos,  however,  have 
no  idea  of  defence;  even  a  single  dog  will  secure  one  of 
these  large  animals  till  the  huntsman  can  come  up.  In 
many  of  their  habits  they  are  like  sheep  in  a  flock.  Thus, 
when  they  see  men  approaching  in  several  directions  on 
horseback,  they  soon  become  bewildered,  and  know  not  which 
way  to  run.  This  greatly  favors  the  Indian  mode  of  hunt- 
ing, for  they  are  thus  easily  driven  to  a  central  point  and 
surrounded. 

The  guanacos  readily  take  to  the  water;    several  times 


44  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


at  Port  Valdes  they  were  seen  swimming  from  island  to 
island.  Byron,  in  his  voyage,  says  he  saw  them  drinking 
salt  water.  Some  of  our  officers  likewise  saw  a  herd  ap- 
parently drinking  the  briny  fluid  from  a  salina  (salt-marsh) 
near  Cape  Blanco.  I  imagine  that,  in  several  parts  of  the 
country,  if  they  do  not  drink  salt  water  they  drink  none 
at  all.  In  the  middle  of  the  day  they  frequently  roll  in 
the  dust,  in  saucer-shaped  hollows.  Herds  sometimes  seem 
to  set  out  on  exploring  parties.  At  Bahia  Blanca,  where, 
within  thirty  miles  of  the  coast,  these  animals  are  extremely 
infrequent,  I  one  day  saw  the  track  of  thirty  or  forty,  which 
had  come  in  a  direct  line  to  a  muddy  salt-water  creek.  They 
then  must  have  perceived  that  they  were  approaching  the 
sea,  for  they  had  wheeled  with  the  regularity  of  cavalry, 
and  had  returned  back  in  as  straight  a  line  as  they  had 
advanced.  The  guanacos,  like  sheep,  always  follow  the  same 
line. 

The  puma,  with  the  condor  and  other  carrion-hawks  in 
its  train,  follows  and  preys  upon  these  animals.  On  the 
banks  of  the  Santa  Cruz  the  footsteps  of  the  purna  were  to 
be  seen  almost  everywhere;  and  the  remains  of  several  gua- 
nacos, with  their  necks  dislocated  and  bones  broken,  showed 
how  they  had  met  their  death. 

THE   PUMA. 

THE  puma,  or  South  American  lion  (Felis  concolor), 
is  not  uncommon  in  Chile.  This  animal  has  a  wide  geo- 
graphical range,  being  found  from  the  equatorial  forests, 


THE  PUMA. 


45 


CHILE. 


throughout  the  deserts  of  Patagonia,  as  far  south  as  the 
damp  and  cold  latitudes  (fifty-three  to  fifty-four  degrees)  of 
Tierra  del  Fuego.  I  have  seen  its  footsteps  in  the  cordillera 
of  Central  Chile,  at  an  elevation  of  at  least  ten  thousand  feet. 
In  La  Plata  the  puma  preys  chiefly  on  deer,  ostriches,  bizca- 
chas,  and  other  small  quadrupeds;  it  there  seldom  attacks 
cattle  or  horses,  and  most  rarely  man.  In  Chile,  however,  it 
destroys  many  young  horses  and  cattle,  owing  probably  to 
the  scarcity  of  other  quadrupeds.  I  heard,  likewise,  of  two 
men  and  a  woman  who 
had  been  thus  killed.  It 
is  said  that  the  puma  al- 
ways kills  its  prey  by 
springing  on  the  shoul- 
ders, and  then  drawing 
back  the  head  with  one 
of  its  paws  until  the  ver- 
tebrae break.  The  puma, 
after  eating  its  fill,  cov- 
ers the  carcass  with  many 
large  bushes,  and  lies  down  to  watch  it.  This  habit  is  often 
the  cause  of  its  being  discovered ;  for  the  condors,  wheel- 
ing in  the  air,  every  now  and  then  descend  to  share  in  the 
feast,  and,  being  angrily  driven  away,  rise  all  together  on  the 
wing.  The  Chilean  then  knows  there  is  a  lion  watching  his 
prey;  the  word  is  given,  and  men  and  dogs  hurry  to  the 
chase. 

The  flesh  of  the  puma  is  in  great  esteem,  resembling  veal 
not  a  little  both  in  color,  taste,  and  flavor. 


46 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


LA    PLATA. 


THE    JAGUAR. 

THE  wooded  banks  of  the  great  rivers  appear  to  be  the 
favorite  haunts  of  the  jaguar;  but  south  of  the  Plata,  I  was 

told  they  frequented  the  reeds 
bordering  lakes :  wherever  they 
are,  they  seem  to  require  wa- 
ter. Their  common  prey  is  the 
capibara,  or  water-hog,  so  that 
it  is  generally  said,  where  ca- 
pibaras  are  numerous  there  is 
little  danger  from  the  jaguar. 
Falconer  states  that  near  the 
southern  side  of  the  mouth  of 
the  Plata  there  are  many  jag- 
uars, and  that  they  chiefly  live 
on  fish.  This  account  I  have 
heard  repeated.  On  the  Parana  they  have  killed  many 
wood-cutters,  and  have  even  entered  vessels  at  night.  When 
the  floods  drive  these  animals  from  the  islands  they  are  most 
dangerous.  I  was  told  that, 
a  few  years  since,  a  very  large 
one  found  its  way  into  a  cliurch 
at  Santa  Fe:  two  priests,  en- 
tering one  after  the  other,  were 
killed,  and  a  third,  who  came 
to  see  what  was  the  matter, 
escaped  with  difficulty.  The  beast  was  destroyed  by  being 
shot  from  a  corner  of  the  building  which  was  unroofed. 


THE  JAGUAK. 


THE   CAPIBARA. 


THE  JAGUAR.  47 


LA    PLATA. 


They  commit,  also,  at  these  times,  great  ravages  among  cattle 
and  horses.  It  is  said  that  they  kill  their  prey  by  breaking 
their  necks.  If  driven  from  the  carcass,  they  seldom  return 
to  it.  The  jaguar  is  a  noisy  animal,  roaring  much  by  night, 
and  especially  before  bad  weather. 

One  day,  when  hunting  on  the  banks  of  the  Uruguay, 
I  was  shown  certain  trees  to  which  these  animals  constantly 
resort,  for  the  purpose,  as  it  is  said,  of  sharpening  their  claws. 
I  saw  three  well-known  trees;  in  front,  the  bark  was  worn 
smooth,  as  if  by  the  breast  of  the  animal,  and  on  each  side 
there  were  deep  scratches,  or  rather  grooves,  nearly  a  yard 
in  length.  The  scars  were  of  different  ages.  A  common 
mode  of  finding  out  whether  a  jaguar  is  in  the  neighborhood, 
is  to  examine  one  of  these  trees.  I  imagine  this  habit  of 
the  jaguar  is  exactly  similar  to  one  which  may  any  day  be 
seen  in  the  common  cat,  as  with  outstretched  legs  and  un- 
covered claws  it  scrapes  the  leg  of  a  chair;  and  I  have 
heard  of  young  fruit-trees  in  an  orchard  in  England  having 
been  thus  much  injured.  Some  such  habit  must  also  be  com- 
mon to  the  puma,  for  on  the  bare,  hard  soil  of  Patagonia,  I 
have  frequently  seen  scores  so  deep  that  no  other  animal 
could  have  made  them.  The  object  of  this  practice  is,  I  be- 
lieve, to  tear  off  the  ragged  points  of  their  claws,  and  not,  as 
the  Gauchos  think,  to  sharpen  them.  The  jaguar  is  killed, 
without  much  difficulty,  by  the  aid  of  dogs  baying  and  driv- 
ing him  up  a  tree,  where  he  is  despatched  with  bullets. 

The  Gauchos  differ  in  their  opinion  whether  the  jaguar 
is  good  eating,  but  are  unanimous  in  saying  that  puma  is 
excellent. 


48  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


LA    PLATA. 


THE    BIZCACHA. 

THE  bizcacha  of  the  pampas  (South  American  prairies) 
somewhat  resembles  the  large  rabbit,  but  with  bigger  gnaw- 
ing teeth  and  a  long  tail.  It  is  a  curious  circumstance  in 
its  geographical  distribution  that  it  has  never  been  seen, 
fortunately  for  the  inhabitants  of  Banda  Oriental,  to  the 
eastward  of  the  Kiver  Uruguay ;  yet  in  this  province  there 
are  plains  which  appear  admirably  adapted  to  its  habits. 
The  Uruguay  has  formed  an  insuperable  obstacle  to  its  mi- 
gration, although  the  broader  barrier  of  the  Parana  has  been 
passed,  and  the  bizcacha  is  common  in  Entre  Rios,  the  prov- 
ince between  these  two  great  rivers.  Near  Buenos  Ayres 
these  animals  are  exceedingly  common.  Their  favorite  re- 
sort appears  to  be  those  parts  of  the  plain  which,  during 
one  half  of  the  year,  are  covered  with  giant  thistles  in  place 
of  all  other  plants.  The  Gauchos  declare  that  it  lives  on 
roots — which,  from  the  great  strength  of  its  gnawing-teeth, 
and  the  kind  of  places  frequented  by  it,  seems  probable.  In 
the  evening  the  bizcachas  come  out  in  numbers,  and  quietly 
sit  at  the  mouths  of  their  burrows  on  their  haunches.  At 
such  times  they  are  very  tame.  They  run  very  awkwardly, 
and,  when  running  out  of  danger,  from  their  uplifted  tails 
and  short  front  legs,  much  resemble  great  rats.  Their  flesh, 
when  cooked,  is  very  white  and  good,  but  it  is  seldom  used. 

The  bizcacha  has  one  very  singular  habit,  namely,  drag- 
ging every  hard  object  to  the  mouth  of  its  burrow:  around 
each  group  of  holes  many  bones  of  cattle,  stones,  thistle- 
stalks,  hard  lumps  of  earth,  dry  dung,  etc.,  are  collected  into 


THE  BIZCACHA. 


49 


LA    PLATA. 


an  irregular  heap,  which  frequently  amounts  to  as  much  as 
a  wheelbarrow  would  contain.  I  was  told,  and  can  believe 
it,  that  a  gentleman,  when  riding  on  a  dark  night,  dropped 
his  watch ;  he  returned  in  the  morning,  and  by  searching 


THE   AUSTRALIAN  BOWER  BIRD. 


the  neighborhood  of  every  bizcacha  hole  on  the  line  of 
road,  he  soon  found  it,  as  he  expected.  This  habit  of  pick- 
ing up  whatever  may  be  lying  on  the  ground  anywhere  near 
its  habitation,  must  cost  much  trouble.  For  what  pur- 
pose it  is  done  I  am  quite  unable  to  guess:  it  cannot  be 


50  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA, 


for  defence,  because  the  rubbish  is  chiefly  placed  above  the 
mouth  of  the  burrow,  which  enters  the  ground  at  a  very 
small  slope.  No  doubt  there  must  be  some  good  reason, 
but  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  are  quite  ignorant  of  it. 
The  only  fact  which  I  know  like  it  is  the  habit  of  an  ex- 
traordinary Australian  bird  (the  Calodera  maculata),  which 
makes  an  elegant  vaulted  passage  of  twigs  for  playing  in, 
and  which  collects  near  the  spot  land  and  sea  shells,  bones, 
and  the  feathers  of  birds,  especially  brightly -colored  ones. 
Mr.  Gould  tells  ine  that  the  natives,  when  they  lose  any 
hard  object,  search  these  playing  passages;  and  he  has 
known  a  tobacco-pipe  thus  recovered. 

THE   SEAL. 

I  ACCOMPANIED  the  captain  of  the  Beagle  in  a  boat  to 
the  head  of  a  deep  creek  in  the  Chorios  Archipelago.  On 
the  way  the  number  of  seals  that  we  saw  was  quite  aston- 
ishing: every  bit  of  flat  rock,  and  parts  of  the  beach,  were 
covered  with  them.  They  appeared  to  be  of  a  loving  dis- 
position, and  lay  huddled  together,  fast  asleep,  like  so  many 
pigs;  but  even  pigs  would  have  been  ashamed  of  their  dirt, 
and  of  the  foul  smell  which  came  from  them.  Each  herd 
was  watched  by  the  patient  but  ill-boding  eyes  of  the  tur- 
key-buzzard. This  disgusting  bird,  with  its  bald  scarlet 
head,  formed  to  wallow  in  putridity,  is  very  common  on  the 
west  coast  of  South  America,  and  their  attendance  on  the 
seals  shows  on  what  they  rely  for  their  food.  We  found 
the  water  (probably  only  that  of  the  surface)  nearly  fresh : 


THE  SEAL— THE  TERN— THE  GULL. 


51 


CHONOS   ARCHIPELAGO. 


THE   SEAL. 


this  was  caused  by  the  number   of  torrents  which,  in  the 
form  of  cascades,  came  tumbling  over  the  bold  granite  nioun- 


THE  TERX. 


THE   GULL. 


tains  into  the  sea.     The  fresh  water  attracts  the  fish,  and 
these  bring  many  terns,  gulls,  and  two  kinds  of  cormorant. 


52  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO-  ' 

We  saw,  also,  a  pair  of  the  beautiful  black- necked  swans, 
and  several  small  sea-otters,  the  fur  of  which  is  held  in  such 
high  estimation.  In  returning,  we  were  again  amused  by 
the  impetuous  manner  in  which  the  heap  of  seals,  old  and 
young,  tumbled  into  the  water  as  the  boat  passed.  They  did 


THE   SEA-L10X. 


not  remain  long  under  water,  but,  rising,  followed  us  with 
outstretched  necks,  expressing  great  wonder  and  curiosity. 

THE    WHALE. 

THE  fact  of  the  Beagle  Channel  being  an  arm  of  the  sea 
was  made  plain  by  several  huge  whales  spouting  in  different 
directions.  On  one  occasion  I  saw  two  of  these  monsters, 
probably  male  and  female,  slowly  swimming,  one  after  the 
other,  within  less  than  a  stone's  throw  of  the  shore,  over 


THE  PORPOISE.  53 


ATLANTIC  OCEAN. 


which  the  beech -tree  extended  its  branches.  At  another 
time,  off  the  east  coast  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  we  saw  a  grand 
sight  in  several  spermaceti  whales  jumping  upright,  quite 
out  of  the  water,  with  the  exception  of  their  tail-fins.  As 
they  fell  down  sideways  they  splashed  the  water  high  up, 
and  the  sound  re-echoed  like  a  distant  broadside. 


THE  PORPOISE. 

ON  the  morning  of  July  5th,  1832,  we  got  under  way, 
and  stood  out  of  the  splendid  harbor  of  Rio  de  Janeiro.  In 
our  passage  to  the  Plata  we  saw  nothing  particular,  except- 
ing on  one  day  a  great  shoal  of  porpoises,  many  hundreds  in 
number.  The  whole  sea  was  in  places  furrowed  by  them ; 
and  a  most  extraordinary  spectacle  was  presented,  as  hun- 
dreds, proceeding  together  by  jumps,  in  which  their  whole 
bodies  were  exposed,  thus  cut  the  water.  When  the  ship 
was  running  nine  knots  an  hour  these  animals  could  cross 
and  recross  the  bows  writh  the  greatest  ease,  and  then  dash 
away  right  ahead.  As  soon  as  W7e  entered  the  estuary  of 
the  Plata  the  weather  was  very  unsettled.  One  dark  night 
we  were  surrounded  by  numerous  seals  and  penguins,  which 
made  such  strange  noises  that  the  officer  on  watch  reported 
he  could  hear  the  cattle  bellowing  on  shore.  On  a  second 
night  we  witnessed  a  splendid  scene  of  natural  fireworks; 
the  mast-head  and  yard-arm  ends  shone  with  St.  Elmo's 
light,  and  the  form  of  the  vane  could  almost  be  traced,  as 
if  it  had  been  rubbed  with  phosphorus.  The  sea  wras  so 
highly  luminous  that  the  tracks  of  the  penguins  were  mark- 


54  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PACIFIC  OCEAN. 


ed  by  a  fiery  wake,  and  the  darkness  of  the  sky  was  mo- 
mentarily illuminated  by  the  most  vivid  lightning. 

THE    LIZARD. 

THE  Amllyrh/yncuS)  a  remarkable  kind  of  lizard,  is  con- 
fined to  the  Galapagos  (or  Turtle)  archipelago.  There  are 
two  species,  resembling  each  other  in  general  form,  one  being 
a  land,  and  the  other  a  water  species.  The  latter  is  ex- 
tremely common  on  all  the  islands  throughout  the  group, 
and  lives  altogether  on  the  rocky  sea-beaches,  being  never 
found  (at  least  I  never  saw  one)  even  ten  yards  in -shore. 
It  is  a  hideous-looking  creature,  of  a  dirty  black  color,  stupid, 
and  sluggish  in  its  movements.  The  usual  length  of  a  full- 
grown  one  is  about  a  yard,  but  there  are  some  even  four 
feet  long.  Their  tails  are  flattened  sideways,  and  all  four 
feet  are  partially  webbed ;  and  they  are  occasionally  seen 
some  hundred  yards  from  the  shore,  swimming  about.  Yet, 
strange  to  say,  when  frightened  they  will  not  enter  the  wa- 
ter. Hence,  it  is  easy  to  drive  these  lizards  down  to  any 
little  point  overhanging  the  sea,  where  they  will  sooner  allow 
a  person  to  catch  hold  of  their  tails  than  jump  into  the 
water.  They  do  not  seem  to  have  any  notion  of  biting; 
but  when  much  frightened  they  squirt  a  drop  of  fluid  from 
each  nostril.  Several  times  I  threw  one  as  far  as  I  could 
into  a  deep  pool  left  by  the  retreating  tide;  but  it  always 
returned  in  a  straight  line  to  the  spot  where  I  stood.  It 
swam  near  the  bottom,  with  a  very  graceful  and  rapid  move- 
ment, and  occasionally  helped  itself  over  the  uneven  ground 


A  PHOSPHORESCENT  SEA. 


THE  LIZARD.  57 


PACIFIC   OCEAN. 


with  its  feet.  As  soon  as  it  arrived  near  the  edge,  but  being 
still  under  water,  it  tried  to  conceal  itself  in  the  tufts  of  sea- 
weed, or  it  entered  some  crevice.  As  soon  as  it  thought  the 
danger  was  past,  it  crawled  out  on  the  dry  rocks,  and  shuf- 
fled away  as  quickly  as  it  could.  I  several  times  caught  this 


Culpepperl.3 
Wenmanl.0 


GALAPAGOS  ISLANDS 


Tower  I. 


^Indefatigable  I. 

fc*"" 

Harrington  1.  fffpCliatham  1. 


Charles  1. 


same  lizard  by  driving  it  down  to  a  point,  and  though  hav- 
ing such  perfect  powers  of  diving  and  swimming,  nothing 
would  induce  it  to  enter  the  water;  and,  as  often  as  I  threw 
it  in,  it  returned  in  the  manner  I  have  just  described.  Per- 
haps this  apparent  stupidity  may  be  explained  by  the  fact 


58  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


GALAPAGOS    ISLANDS. 


that  this  reptile  has  no  enemy  whatever  on  shore,  whereas 
at  sea  it  must  often  fall  a  prey  to  the  numerous  sharks. 
Hence,  probably,  a  fixed  and  hereditary  instinct  that  the 
shore  is  its  place  of  safety ;  so  that  whatever  the  danger  may 
be,  there  it  takes  refuge. 

We  will  now  turn  to  the  land  species  of  Amblyrliyncus, 
with  a  round  tail  and  toes  without  a  web.  Some  of  these 
lizards  inhabit  the  high  and  damp  parts  of  the  islands,  but 
they  are  much  more  numerous  in  the  lower  and  barren  dis- 
tricts near  the  coast.  I  cannot  give  a  more  forcible  -proof  of 
their  numbers  than  by  stating  that,  when  we  were  left  at 
James  Island,  we  could  not  for  some  time  find  a  spot  free 
from  their  burrows  on  which  to  pitch  our  single  tent.  Like 
their  brothers,  the  sea-kind,  they  are  ugly  animals,  of  a  yel- 
lowish orange  beneath,  and  of  a  brownish -red  color  above. 
When  making  its  burrow,  this  animal  works  by  turns  the 
opposite  sides  of  its  body.  One  front  leg  for  a  short  time 
scratches  up  the  soil  and  throws  it  toward  the  hind  foot, 
which  is  well  placed  so  as  to  heave  it  beyond  the  mouth  of 
the  hole.  That  side  of  the  body  being  tired,  the  other  takes 
up  the  task,  and  so  on  alternately.  I  watched  one  for  a 
long  time,  till  half  its  body  was  buried ;  I  then  walked  up 
and  pulled  it  by  the  tail;  at  this  it  was  greatly  astonished, 
and  soon  shuffled  up  to  see  what  was  the  matter,  and  then 
stared  me  in  the  face,  as  much  as  to  say,  "What  made  you 
pull  my  tail  ?" 

They  feed  by  day,  and  do  not  wander  far  from  their  bur- 
rows; if  frightened,  they  rush  to  them  with  a  most  awkward 
gait.  When  attentively  watching  any  one,  they  curl  their 


THE  LIZARD. 


59 


GALAPAGOS   ISLANDS. 


tails,  and,  raising  themselves  on  their  front  legs,  nod  their 
heads  up  and  down,  and  try  to  look  very  fierce;  but  in  real- 
ity they  are  not  at  all  so;  if  one  just  stamps  on  the  ground, 
down  go  their  tails,  and  off  they  shuffle  as  quickly  as  they 


CACTUS  GROWTH  IN  THE  DESERTS  OF  UTAH. 

can.  I  have  often  seen  small  fly-eating  lizards,  when  watch- 
ing anything,  nod  their  heads  in  precisely  the  same  manner, 
but  I  do  not  at  all  know  for  what  purpose.  If  this  Amlly- 
rJiyncus  is  held  and  plagued  with  a  stick,  it  will  bite  it  very 


60  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


GALAPAGOS   ISLANDS, 


severely;  but  I  caught  many  by  the  tail,  and  they  never 
tried  to  bite  me.  If  two  are  placed  on  the  ground  and  held 
together,  they  will  fight,  and  bite  each  other  till  blood  is 
drawn.  The  little  birds  know  how  harmless  these  creatures 
are:  I  have  seen  one  of  the  thick-billed  finches  picking  at 
one  end  of  a  piece  of  cactus  while  a  lizard  was  eating  at  the 
other  end ;  and  afterward  the  little  bird,  with  the  utmost  in- 
difference, hopped  on  the  back  of  the  reptile.  I  opened  the 
stomachs  of  several,  and  found  them  full  of  vegetable  fibres 
and  leaves  of  different  trees,  especially  of  an  acacia.  To  ob- 
tain the  acacia-leaves  they  crawl  up  the  low,  stunted  trees; 
and  it  is  not  uncommon  to  see  a  pair  quietly  browsing,  while 
seated  on  a  branch  several  feet  above  the  ground. 

THE    TORTOISE. 

IN  the  woods  on  Charles  Island  there  are  many  wild 
pigs  and  goats,  but  the  chief  article  of  animal  food  is  sup- 
plied by  the  tortoises.  Their  numbers  have,  of  course,  been 
greatly  reduced,  but  the  people  yet  count  on  two  days'  hunt- 
ing giving  them  food  for  the  rest  of  the  week.  It  is  said 
that  formerly  single  vessels  have  taken  away  as  many  as 
seven  hundred,  and  that  the  ship's  company  of  a  frigate  some 
years  since  brought  down,  in  one  day,  two  hundred  tortoises 
to  the  beach.  Some  grow  to  an  immense  size :  Mr.  Lawson, 
an  Englishman,  and  vice-governor  of  the  colony,  told  us  that 
he  had  seen  several  so  large  that  it  required  six  or  eight 
men  to  lift  them  from  the  ground,  and  that  some  had  yielded 
as  much  as  two  hundred  pounds  of  meat.  The  old  males 


THE   TORTOISE. 


61 


GALAPAGOS    ISLANDS. 


are  the  largest,  the  females  rarely  growing  to  so  great  a  size : 
the  male  can  readily  be  distinguished  from  the  female  by 
the  greater  length  of  its  tail.  The  tortoises  which  live  on 
those  islands  where  there  is  no  water,  or  in  the  lower  and 
dry  parts  of  the  other  islands,  feed  chiefly  on  the  juicy  cactus. 
They  are  very  fond  of  water,  drinking  large  quantities,  and 
wallowing  in  the  mud.  The  larger  islands  alone  have  springs, 
and  these  are  always  situated  toward  the  central  parts,  and  at 
a  considerable  height. 
The  tortoises,  therefore, 
which  inhabit  the  low- 
er districts,  are  obliged, 
when  thirsty,  to  travel 
from  a  long  distance. 
Hence,  broad  and  well- 
beaten  paths  branch 
off  in  every  direction 
from  the  wells  down  to 
the  sea-coast;  and  the 
Spaniards,  by  following  them  up,  first  discovered  the  water- 
ing-places. When  I  landed  at  Chatham  Island  I  could  not 
imagine  what  animal  travelled  so  methodically  along  well- 
chosen  tracks.  Near  the  springs  it  was  a  curious  spectacle 
to  behold  many  of  these  huge  creatures  —  one  set  eagerly 
travelling  onward  with  outstretched  necks,  and  another  set 
returning,  after  having  drunk  their  fill.  When  the  tortoise 
arrives  at  the  spring  he  buries  his  head  in  the  water  above 
his  eyes,  and  greedily  swallows  great  mouthfuls,  at  the  rate 
of  about  ten  in  a  minute.  The  inhabitants  say  each  animal 


THE   TORTOISE. 


62  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


GALAPAGOS   ISLANDS. 


stays  three  or  four  days  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  water, 
and  then  returns  to  the  lower  country;  but  they  differed  as 
to  the  frequency  of  these  visits,  which  probably  depends  on 
the  nature  of  the  food  on  which  the  animal  has  lived.  It  is, 
however,  certain  that  tortoises  can  subsist  even  on  those  isl- 
ands where  there  is  no  other  water  than  what  falls  during 
a  few  rainy  days  in  the  year.  I  believe  it  is  well  ascertained 
that  the  bladder  of  the  frog  acts  as  a  reservoir  for  the  moist- 
ure necessary  to  its  existence:  such  seems  to  be  the  case 
with  the  tortoise. 

The  tortoises,  when  purposely  moving  toward  any  point, 
travel  by  night  and  day,  and  arrive  at  their  journey's  end 
much  sooner  than  would  be  expected.  The  inhabitants,  from 
observing  marked  individuals,  consider  that  they  travel  a 
distance  of  about  eight  miles  in  two  or  three  days.  One 
large  tortoise  which  I  watched,  walked  at  the  rate  of  sixty 
yards  in  ten  minutes — that  is,  three  hundred  and  sixty  yards 
in  the  hour,  or  four  miles  a  day,  allowing  a  little  time  for  it 
to  eat  on  the  road.  They  were  at  this  time  (October)  laying 
their  eggs.  The  female,  where  the  soil  is  sandy,  deposits 
them  together,  and  covers  them  up  with  sand ;  but  where 
the  ground  is  rocky  she  drops  them  about  in  any  hole.  The 
young  tortoises,  as  soon  as  they  are  hatched,  fall  a  prey  in 
great  numbers  to  the  carrion-feeding  buzzard.  The  old  ones 
seem  generally  to  die  from  accidents,  as  from  falling  down 
precipices;  at  least,  several  of  the  inhabitants  told  me  that 
they  had  never  found  one  dead  without  some  evident  cause. 

The  inhabitants  believe  that  these  animals  are  absolutely 
deaf;  certainly  they  do  not  overhear  a  person  walking  close 


THE   TOAD.  63 


LA   PLATA. 


behind  them.  I  was  always  amused,  when  overtaking  one 
of  these  great  monsters,  as  it  was  quietly  pacing  along,  to 
see  how  suddenly,  the  instant  I  passed,  it  would  draw  in  its 
head  and  legs,  and,  uttering  a  deep  hiss,  fall  to  the  ground 
with  a  heavy  sound,  as  if  struck  dead.  I  frequently  got  on 
their  backs,  and  then  giving  a  few  raps  on  the  hinder  part 
of  their  shells,  they  would  rise  up  and  walk  away;  but  "I 
found  it  very  difficult  to  keep  my  balance.  In  order  to  se- 
cure the  tortoises,  it  is  not  enough  to  turn  them  over  like 
turtle,  for  they  are  often  able  to  get  on  their  legs  again. 

THE    TOAD. 

NEAR  Bahia  Blanca  I  found  but  one  little  toad,  which 
was  most  singular  from  its  color.  If  we  imagine,  first,  that 
it  had  been  steeped  in  the  blackest  ink,  and  then,  when 
dry,  allowed  to  crawl  over  a  board  freshly  painted  with  the 
brightest  vermilion,  so  as  to  color  the  soles  of  its  feet  and 
parts  of  its  stomach,  a  good  idea  of  its  appearance  will  be 
gained.  Instead  of  going  about  by  night,  as  other  toads  do, 
and  living  in  damp  and  dark  recesses,  it  crawls  during  the 
heat  of  the  day  about  the  dry  sand-hillocks  and  arid  plains, 
where  not  a  single  drop  of  water  can  be  found.  It  must 
necessarily  depend  on  the  dew  for  its  moisture ;  and  this, 
probably,  is  absorbed  by  the  skin.  At  Maldonaclo  I  found 
one  in  a  situation  nearly  as  dry  as  at  Bahia  Blanca,  arid, 
thinking  to  give  it  a  great  treat,  carried  it  to  a  pool  of  wa- 
ter ;  not  only  was  the  little  animal  unable  to  swim,  but,  I 
think,  without  help  it  would  soon  have  been  drowned. 


64 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CAPE    DE   VERD   ISLANDS. 


THE   CUTTLE-FISH. 


THE    CUTTLE-FISH. 

I  WAS  much  interested,  on  several  occasions,  at  the  Cape 
de  Verd  Islands,  by  watching  the  habits  of  an  Octopus,  or 

cuttle  -  fish.  Although 
common  in  the  pools  of 
water  left  by  the  retir- 
ing tide,  these  animals 
were  not  easily-  caught. 
By  means  of  their  long 
arms  and  suckers  they 
could  drag  their  bodies 
into  very  narrow  crev- 
ices; and,  when  thus 
fixed,  it  required  great 
force  to  remove  them.  At  other  times  they  darted  tail 
first,  with  the  rapidity  of  an  arrow,  from  one  side  of  the 
pool  to  the  other,  at  the  same  instant  discoloring  the  wa- 
ter with  a  dark  chestnut  -  brown  ink.  These  animals  also 
escape  detection  by  a  very  extraordinary,  chameleon  •  like 
power  of  changing  their  color.  They  appear  to  vary  their 
tints  according  to  the  nature  of  the  ground  over  which  they 
pass :  when  in  deep  water  their  general  shade  was  brown- 
ish purple,  but  when  placed  on  the  land,  or  in  shallow  water, 
this  dark  tint  changed  into  one  of  a  yellowish  green.  I  was 
much  amused  by  the  various  arts  to  escape  detection  used 
by  one  individual,  which  seemed  fully  aware  that  I  was 
watching  it.  Remaining  for  a  time  motionless,  it  would  then 
stealthily  advance  an  inch  or  two,  like  a  cat  after  a  mouse, 


THE   CORMORANT— THE  PENGUIN. 


65 


FALKLAND   ISLANDS. 


sometimes  changing  its  color ;  it  thus  proceeded  till,  having 
gained  a  deeper  part,  it  darted  away,  leaving  a  dusky  train 
of  ink  to  hide  the  hole  into  which  it  had  crawled.  While 
looking  for  marine  animals,  with  my  head  about  two  feet 
above  the  rocky  shore,  I  was  more  than  once  saluted  by  a 
jet  of  water,  accompanied  by  a  slight  grating  noise.  At  first 
I  could  not  think  what  it  was,  but  afterward  I  found  out 
that  it  was  this  cuttle-fish,  which,  though  concealed  in  a  hole, 
thus  often  led  me  to  its  discovery.  From  the  difficulty  which 
these  animals  have  in  carrying  their  heads,  they  cannot  crawl 
with  ease  when  placed  on  the  ground. 


THE  CORMORANT— THE  PENGUIN. 

ONE  day,  in  the  Falkland  islands,  I  observed  a  cormorant 
playing  with  a  fish  which  it  had  caught.  Eight  times  suc- 
cessively the  bird  let  its  prey 
go,  then  dived  after  it,  and  al- 
though in  deep  water,  brought 
it  each  time  to  the  surface.  In 
the  Zoological  Gardens  I  have 
seen  the  otter  treat  a  fish  in  the 
same  manner,  much  as  a  cat  does 
a  mouse :  I  do  not  know  of  any 
other  instance  where  Dame  Nat- 
ure seems  so  intentionally  cruel. 
Another  day,  having  placed  my- 
self between  a  penguin  (Apten- 
odytes  demersa)  and  the  water, 

5 


THE   CORMORANT. 


66  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


I  was  much  amused  by  watching  its  habits.  It  was  a  brave 
bird,  and  till  reaching  the  sea  it  regularly  fought  and  drove 
me  backward.  Nothing  less  than  heavy  blows  wrould  have 
stopped  him ;  every  inch  he  gained  he  firmly  kept,  standing 
close  before  me,  erect  and  determined,  while  all  the  time  roll- 
ing his  head  from  side  to  side,  in  a  very  odd  manner,  as  if 
he  could  only  see  distinctly  out  of  the  lower  front  part  of 
each  eye.  This  bird  is  commonly  called  the  jackass-penguin, 
from  its  habit,  while  on  shore,  of  throwing  its  head  back- 
ward, and  making  a  loud,  strange  noise,  very  like  the  bray- 
ing of  an  ass ;  but  while  at  sea,  and  undisturbed,  its  note  is 
very  deep  and  solemn,  and  is  often  heard  in  the  night-time. 
In  diving,  its  little  wings  are  used  as  fins;  but  on  the  land, 
as  front  legs.  When  crawling,  on  four  legs  as  it  were, 
through  the  tussocks  or  on  the  side  of  a  grassy  cliff,  it 
moves  so  very  quickly  that  it  might  easily  be  mistaken  for 
a  quadruped.  When  at  sea  and  fishing,  it  comes  to  the 
surface  for  the  purpose  of  breathing  with  such  a  spring, 
and  dives  again  so  instantaneously,  that  I  defy  any  one  at 
first  sight  to  be  sure  that  it  was  not  a  fish  leaping  for  sport. 

THE    CONDOR. 

THIS  day  (April  27th,  1834)  I  shot  a  condor.  It  meas- 
ured, from  tip  to  tip  of  the  wings,  eight  and  a  half  feet,  and 
from  beak  to  tail,  four  feet.  This  bird  is  known  to  have  a 
wide  geographical  range,  being  found  on  the  west  coast  of 
South  America,  from  the  Strait  of  Magellan  along  the  Cordi- 
llera as  far  as  eight  degrees  north  of  the  equator.  A  line 


THE   CONDOR. 


67 


PATAGONIA. 


of  cliff  near  the  mouth  of  the  Santa  Cruz  is  frequented  by 
these  birds ;  and  about  eighty  miles  up  the  river,  where  the 
sides  of  the  valley  are  formed  by  steep  basaltic  precipices,  the 
condor  reappears.  From  these  facts  it  seems  that  the  condors 
require  perpendicular  cliffs.  In  Chile  they  haunt,  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  year,  the  lower  country,  near  the  shores 
of  the  Pacific,  and  at  night  several  roost  together  in  one 
tree;  but  in  the  early 
part  of  the  summer  they 
retire  to  the  most  inac- 
cessible parts  of  the  in- 
ner Cordillera,  there  to 
breed  in  peace.  I.  was 
told  by  the  country  peo- 
ple in  Chile  that  the 
condor  makes  no  sort  of 
nest,  but  in  the  months 
of  November  and  De- 
cember lays  two  large 
white  eggs  on  a  shelf 
of  bare  rock.  It  is  said 
that  the  young  condors  cannot  fly  for  an  entire  year;  and, 
long  after  they  are  able,  they  continue  to  roost  by  night  and 
hunt  by  day  with  their  parents.  The  old  birds  generally 
live  in  pairs;  but  among  the  inland  basaltic  cliffs  of  the 
Santa  Cruz  I  found  a  spot  where  scores  must  usually  haunt. 
On  coming  suddenly  to  the  brow  of  the  precipice,  it  was  a 
grand  spectacle  to  see  between  twenty  and  thirty  of  these 
great  birds  start  heavily  from  their  resting-place  and  w^heel 


THE   CONDOR. 


68  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

~~  CHJLE7 

away  in  majestic  circles.  Having  gorged  themselves  with 
carrion  on  the  plains  below,  they  retire  to  these  favorite 
ledges  to  digest  their  food.  In  this  part  of  the  country 
they  live  altogether  on  the  guanacos  which  have  died  a 
natural  death,  or,  as  more  commonly  happens,  have  been 
killed  by  the  pumas.  I  believe,  from  what  I  saw  in  Pat- 
agonia, that  they  do  not,  on  ordinary  occasions,  extend  their 
daily  excursions  to  any  great  distance  from  their  regular 
sleeping-places. 

The  condors  may  oftentimes  be  seen  at  a  great  height, 
soaring  over  a  certain  spot  in  the  most  graceful  circles.  On 
some  occasions  I  am  sure  that  they  do  this  only  for  pleasure ; 
but  on  others,  the  Chileno  countryman  tells  you  that  they 
are  watching  a  dying  animal,  or  the  puma  devouring  its  prey. 
If  the  condors  glide  down,  and  then  suddenly  all  rise  togeth- 
er, the  Chileno  knows  that  it  is  the  puma,  which,  watching 
the  carcass,  has  sprung  out  to  drive  away  the  robbers.  Be- 
sides feeding  on  carrion,  the  condors  frequently  attack  young 
goats  and  lambs;  and  the  shepherd -dogs  are  trained,  when- 
ever the  birds  pass  over,  to  run  out,  and,  looking  upward,  to 
bark  violently.  The  Chilenos  destroy  and  catch  numbers. 
Two  methods  are  used :  one  is  to  place  a  carcass  on  a  level 
piece  of  ground  within  an  enclosure  of  sticks,  having  an  open- 
ing, and,  when  the  condors  are  gorged,  to  gallop  up  on  horse- 
back to  the  entrance,  and  thus  enclose  them;  for  when  this 
bird  has  not  space  to  run,  it  cannot  give  its  body  sufficient 
momentum  to  rise  from  the  ground.  The  second  method  is 
to  mark  the  trees  in  which,  frequently  to  the  number  of  five 
or  six  together,  they  roost,  and  then  at  night  to  climb  up  and 


THE   CONDOR.  69 


CHILE. 


noose  them.  They  are  such  heavy  sleepers,  as  I  have  myself 
witnessed,  that  this  is  not  a  difficult  task.  At  Valparaiso  I 
have  seen  a  living  condor  sold  for  sixpence,  but  the  common 
price  is  eight  or  ten  shillings.  In  a  garden,  at  the  same  place, 
between  twenty  and  thirty  were  kept  alive. 

When  an  animal  is  killed  in  the  country,  it  is  well  known 
that  the  condors,  like  other  carrion-vultures,  soon  learn  of  it,, 
and  congregate  in  a  manner  not  yet  explained.  In  most 
cases,  too,  the  birds  have  discovered  their  prey  and  picked 
the  skeleton  clean  before  the  flesh  is  in  the  least  degree 
tainted.  Remembering  the  experiments  of  Mr.  Audubon  on 
the  little  smelling  powers  of  carrion -hawks,  I  tried,  in  the 
above-mentioned  garden,  the  following  experiment :  the  con- 
dors were  tied,  each  by  a  rope,  in  a  long  row  at  the  bottom 
of  a  wall,  and  having  folded  up  a  piece  of  meat  in  white  pa- 
per, I  walked  backward  and  forward,  carrying  it  in  my  hand 
at  the  distance  of  about  three  yards  from  them,  but  no  notice 
whatever  was  taken.  I  then  threw  it  on  the  ground,  within 
one  yard  of  an  old  male  bird ;  he  looked  at  it  for  a  moment 
with  attention,  but  then  regarded  it  no  more.  With  a  stick 
I  pushed  it  closer  and  closer,  until  at  last  he  touched  it  with 
his  beak;  the  paper  was  then  instantly  torn  off  with  fury, 
and  at  the  same  moment  every  bird  in  the  long  row  began 
struggling  and  flapping  its  wings.  Under  the  same  circum- 
stances it  would  have  been  quite  impossible  to  have  deceived 
a  dog. 

Often,  when  lying  down  to  rest  on  the  open  plains,  on 
looking  upward  I  have  seen  carrion -hawks  sailing  through 
the  air  at  a  great  height.  Where  the  country  is  level,  I  do 


70  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PERU. 


not  believe  a  space  of  the  heavens  of  more  than  fifteen  de- 
grees above  the  horizon  is  commonly  viewed  with  any  atten- 
tion by  a  person,  either  walking  or  on  horseback.  If  such 
be  the  case,  and  the  vulture  is  on  the  wing  at  a  height  of 
between  three  and  four  thousand  feet,  before  it  could  come 
within  the  range  of  vision  its  distance  in  a  straight  line  from 
the  beholder's  eye  would  be  rather  more  than  two  British 
miles.  Might  it  not  thus  readily  be  overlooked?  When  an 
animal  is  killed  by  the  sportsman  in  a  lonely  valley,  may  he 
not  all  the  while  be  watched  from  above  by  the  sharp-sight- 
ed bird  ?  And  will  not  the  manner  of  its  descent  proclaim 
throughout  the  district  to  the  whole  family  of  carrion-feeders 
that  their  prey  is  at  hand  ? 

When  the  condors  are  wheeling  in  a  flock  round  and 
round  any  spot,  their  flight  is  beautiful.  Except  when  rising 
from  the  ground,  I  do  not  recollect  ever  having  seen  one  of 
these  birds  flap  its  wings.  Near  Lima,  I  watched  several 
for  nearly  half  an  hour,  without  once  taking  off  my  eyes: 
they  moved  in  large  curves,  sweeping  in  circles,  descending 
and  ascending  without  giving  a  single  flap.  As  they  glided 
close  over  my  head,  I  intently  watched  from  an  oblique  posi- 
tion the  outlines  of  the  separate  and  great  terminal  feathers 
of  eacli  wing ;  and  these  separate  feathers,  if  there  had  been 
i  the  least  vibratory  movement,  would  have  appeared  as  if 
blended  together;  but  they  were  seen  distinct  against  the 
blue  sky.  The  head  and  neck  were  moved  frequently,  and 
apparently  with  great  force;  and  the  outstretched  wings 
seemed  to  form  the  fulcrum  on  which  the  movements  of  the 
neck,  body,  and  tail  acted.  If  the  bird  wished  to  descend, 


THE  OSTRICH.  71 


URUGUAY- 


the  wings  were  for  a  moment  collapsed ;  and  when  again  ex- 
panded with  an  altered  inclination,  the  momentum  gained 
by  the  rapid  descent  seemed  to  urge  the  bird  upward  with 
the  even  and  steady  movement  of  a  paper  kite.  It  is  truly 
wonderful  and  beautiful  to  see  so  great  a  bird,  hour  after 
hour,  without  any  apparent  exertion,  wheeling  and  gliding 
over  mountain  and  river. 


THE    OSTRICH. 

ON  the  fine  plains  of  turf  in  Banda  Oriental  we  saw 
many  ostriches  (Struthio  rlied).  Some  of  the  flocks  con- 
tained as  many  as  twenty  or  thirty  birds.  These,  when 
standing  on  any  little  height  and  seen  against  the  clear 
sky,  presented  a  very  noble  appearance.  I  never  met  with 
such  tame  ostriches  in  any  other  part  of  the  country:  it 
was  easy  to  gallop  up  within  a  short  distance  of  them ;  but 
then,  expanding  their  wings,  they  made  all  sail  before  the 
wind,  and  soon  left  the  horse  astern. 

The  ostrich  is  the  largest  of  the  birds  which  are  com- 
mon on  the  wild  plains  of  Northern  Patagonia.  It  lives  on 
vegetable  matter,  such  as  roots  and  grass;  but  at  Bahia 
Blanca  I  have  repeatedly  seen  three  or  four  come  down  at 
low  water  to  the  extensive  mud-banks,  which  are  then  dry, 
for  the  sake,  as  the  Gauchos  say,  of  feeding  on  small  fish. 
Although  the  ostrich  in  its  habits  is  so  shy,  wary,  and  sol- 
itary, and  although  so  fleet  in  its  pace,  it  is  caught  without 
much  difficulty  by  the  Indian  or  Gaucho  armed  with  the 
bolas  (two  round  stones,  covered  with  leather,  and  united 


72  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


by  a  thin  plaited  thong  about  eight  feet  long).  When  sev- 
eral horsemen  appear  in  a  semicircle,  the  bird  becomes  con- 
founded, and  does  not  know  which  way  to  escape.  They 
generally  prefer  running  against  the  wind,  yet  at  the  first 
start  they  expand  their  wings,  and  like  a  vessel  make  all  sail. 
On  one  fine  hot  day  I  saw  several  ostriches  enter  a  bed  of  tall 
rushes,  where  they  squatted  concealed  till  quite  closely  ap- 
proached. It  is  not  general- 
ly known  that  ostriches  read- 
ily take  to  the  water.  Mr. 
King  informs  me  that  at 
the  Bay  of  San  Bias,  and  at 
Port  Valdes,  in  Patagonia, 
he  saw  these  birds  swim- 
ming several  times  from  isl- 

o 

and  to  island.  They  ran 
into  the  water,  both  when 
driven  down  to  a  point, 
and  likewise  of  their  own 
accord  when  not  frighten- 
ed ;  the  distance  crossed  was 

SKELETON  OF  AN  OSTRICH.  ^^     ^     hundred     ^^ 

When  swimming,  very  little  of  their  bodies  appears  above 
water;  their  necks  are  stretched  a  little  forward,  and  their 
progress  is  slow.  On  two  occasions  I  saw  some  ostriches 
swimming  across  the  Santa  Cruz  River,  where  its  course  was 
about  four  hundred  yards  wide  and  the  stream  rapid.  Cap- 
tain Sturt,  when  descending  the  Murrumbidgee,  in  Australia, 
saw  two  emus  in  the  act  of  swimming. 


THE   OSTRICH.  73 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


The  inhabitants  of  the  country  can  readily  tell,  even  at 
a  distance,  the  cock  bird  from  the  hen.  The  former  is  larger, 
and  darker  colored,  and  has  a  bigger  head.  The  ostrich  (I 
believe,  the  cock)  utters  a  singular  deep-toned,  hissing  note ; 
when  I  first  heard  it,  standing  in  the  midst  of  some  sand-hil- 
locks, I  thought  it  was  made  by  some  wild  beast,  for  it  is  a 
sound  that  one  cannot  tell  whence  it  comes  or  from  how  far 
distant.  When  we  were  at  Bahia  Blanca,  in  the  months  of 
September  and  October,  the  eggs,  in  extraordinary  numbers, 
were  found  all  over  the  country.  They  lie  either  scattered 
and  single  (in  which  case  they  are  never  hatched,  and  are 
called  by  the  Spaniards  huachos),  or  they  are  collected  to- 
gether into  a  shallow  excavation,  which  forms  the  nest.  Out 
of  the  four  nests  which  I  saw,  three  contained  twenty -two 
eggs  sach,  and  the  fourth  twenty- seven.  Each  of  these  is 
said  to  equal  in  weight  eleven  hen  eggs;  so  that  we  ob- 
tained from  this  last  nest  as  much  food  as  two  hundred 
and  ninety-seven  hen  eggs  would  have  given.  The  Gauchos 
all  agree  in  saying  that  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that 
the  male  bird  alone  hatches  the  eggs,  and  for  some  time 
afterward  accompanies  the  young.  The  cock,  when  on  the 
nest,  lies  very  close;  I  have  myself  almost  ridden  over  one. 
At  such  times  they  are  said  to  be  occasionally  fierce  and 
even  dangerous,  and  to  have  been  known  to  attack  a  man 
on  horseback,  trying  to  kick  and  leap  on  him.  My  informer 
pointed  out  to  me  an  old  man  whom  he  had  seen  much 
terrified  by  one  chasing  him.  I  observe,  in  Burchell's  trav- 
els in  South  Africa,  that  he  remarks,  "  Having  killed  a  male 
ostrich,  and  the  feathers  being  dirty,  it  was  said  by  the  Hot- 


74  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


tentots  to  be  a  nest  bird."  I  understand  that  the  male  emu 
in  the  London  Zoological  Gardens  takes  charge  of  the  nest: 
this  habit,  therefore,  is  common  to  the  family. 

THE    CASARITA. 

THE  casarita  (little  housebuilder)  as  the  Spaniards  call 
it,  from  its  resemblance  to  the  casara  (housebuilder  or  oven- 
bird),  makes  its  nest  at  the  bottom  of  a  narrow  cylindrical 
hole,  which  is  said  to  extend  horizontally  to  nearly  six  feet 
under  ground.  Several  of  the  country  people  told  me  that 
when  boys  they  had  attempted  to  dig  out  the  nest,  but  had 
scarcely  ever  succeeded  in  getting  to  the  end  of  the  passage. 
The  bird  chooses  any  low  bank  of  firm  sandy  soil  by  the 
side  of  a  road  or  stream.  Here  (at  Bahia  Blanca)  the  walls 
round  the  houses  are  built  of  hardened  mud,  and  I  noticed 
that  one,  which  enclosed  a  court  -  yard  where  I  lodged,  was 
bored  through  by  round  holes  in  a  score  of  places.  On  ask- 
ing the  owner  the  cause  of  this,  he  bitterly  complained  of 
the  little  casarita,  several  of  which  I  afterward  observed  at 
work.  It  is  rather  curious  to  find  how  unable  these  birds 
must  be  to  get  any  idea  of  thickness,  for  although  they  were 
constantly  flitting  over  the  low  wall,  they  kept  on  vainly 
boring  through  it,  thinking  it  an  excellent  bank  for  their 
nests.  I  do  not  doubt  that  each  bird,  as  often  as  it  came 
to  daylight  on  the  opposite  side,  was  greatly  surprised  at 
the  marvellous  fact. 


TAME  BIRDS   ON  DESERT  ISLANDS. 


ATLANTIC  OCEAN. 


TAME   BIRDS   ON   DESERT   ISLANDS. 

WE  found,  on  St.  Paul's  Rocks,  only  two  kinds  of  birds 

—the  booby  and  the  noddy.     The  former  is  a  species  of  gan- 

net,  and  the  latter  a  tern.     Both  are  of  a  tame  and  stupid 

disposition,  and  are  so  unused  to  visitors  that  I  could  have 


m 


ST.  PAUL'S   ROCKS. 


killed  any  number  of  them  with  my  geological  hammer.  The 
booby  lays  her  eggs  on  the  bare  rock;  but  the  tern  makes  a 
very  simple  nest  with  sea-wTeed.  By  the  side  of  many  of 
these  nests  a  small  flying-fish  was  placed,  which,  I  suppose, 
had  been  brought  by  the  male  bird  for  its  partner.  It  was 
amusing  to  watch  how  quickly  a  large  and  active  crab,  which 
inhabits  the  crevices  of  the  rocks,  stole  the  fish  from  the  side 


76  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


GALAPAGOS   ISLANDS. 


of  the  nest  as  soon  as  we  had  disturbed  the  parent  birds. 
Sir  W.  Symonds,  one  of  the  few  persons  who  have  landed 


THE  NODDY. 

here,  informs  me  that  he  saw  the  crabs  dragging  even  the 
young  birds  out  of  their  nests  and  devouring  them. 

Extreme  tameness  is  common  to  all  the  land-birds  in  the 
Galapagos  Islands,  namely,  to  the  mocking  -  thrushes,  the 
finches,  wrens,  tyrant  fly-catchers,  the  dove,  and  carrion -buz- 
zard. All  of  them  often  approached  sufficiently  near  to  be 
killed  with  a  switch,  and  sometimes,  as  I  myself  tried,  with 
a  cap  or  hat.  A  gun  is  here  almost  superfluous;  for  with 
the  muzzle  I  pushed  a  hawk  off  the  branch  of  a  tree.  One 
day,  while  lying  down,  a  mocking- thrush  alighted  on  the 
edge  of  a  pitcher,  made  of  the  shell  of  a  tortoise,  which  I 


TAME  BIRDS   ON  DESERT  ISLANDS. 


GALAPAGOS    ISLANDS. 


held  in  my  baud,  and  began  very  quietly  to  sip  the  water; 
it  allowed  me  to  lift  it  from  the  ground  while  seated  on  the 
vessel.  I  often  tried,  and  very  nearly  succeeded,  in  catching 
these  birds  by  their  legs.  Formerly  the  birds  appear  to 
have  been  even  tamer  than  at  present.  Cowley  (in  the  year 
1684)  says  that  the  "turtle-doves  were  so  tame  that  they 
would  often  alight  upon  our  hats  and  arms,  so  as  that  we 
could  take  them  alive:  they  not  fearing  man  until  such  time 
as  some  of  our  company  did  fire  at  them,  whereby  they  were 
rendered  more  shy."  Dampier,  also,  in  the  same  year,  says 
that  a  man  in  a  morning's  walk  might  kill  six  or  seven  dozen 
of  these  doves.  At  present,  although  certainly  very  tame, 
they  do  not  alight  on  people's  arms,  nor  do  they  suffer  them- 


FLYING-FISII. 


selves  to  be  killed  in  such  large  numbers.     It  is  surprising 
that  they  have  not  become  wilder,  for  these  islands  durin^ 


78 


WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 


GALAPAGOS    ISLANDS. 


HEAD   OF  A  FLY-CATCHER. 


the  last  hundred  and  fifty  years  have  been  frequently  vis- 
ited by  buccaneers  and  whalers,  and  the  sailors,  wandering 

through  the  woods  in 
search  of  tortoises,  al- 
ways take  cruel  de- 
light in  knocking 
down  the  little  birds. 
In  Charles  Island, 
which  had  then  been 
settled  about  six 
years,  I  saw  a  boy 
sitting  by  a  well  with 
a  switch  in  his  hand, 
with  which  he  killed  the  doves  and  finches  as  they  came  to 
drink.  He  had  already  got  a  little  heap  of  them  for  his 
dinner,  and  he  said  that  he  had  constantly  been  in  the  habit 
of  waiting  by  this  well  for  the  same  purpose.  It  would 
seem  that  the  birds  of  this  archipelago,  not  having  as  yet 
learned  that  man  is  a  more  dangerous  animal  than  the  tor- 
toise or  the  lizard  (Ambly- 
rliyncus),  disregard  him,  just 
as  in  England  shy  birds, 
such  as  magpies,  do  not 
mind  the  cows  and  horses 
grazing  in  the  fields. 

The  Falkland  Islands  of- 
fer a  second  instance  of  birds 

with  a  similar  disposition.     As  the  birds  are  so  tame  there, 
where  foxes,  hawks,  and  owls  occur,  we  may  infer  that  the 


TAME  BIRDS  ON  DESERT  ISLANDS. 


FALKLAND   ISLANDS. 


absence  of  all  beasts  of  prey  at  the  Galapagos  is  not  the 
cause  of  their  tameness  here.  The  upland  geese  at  the  Falk- 
lands  show,  by  the  precaution  they  take  in  building  on  the 
islets,  that  they  are  aware  of  their  danger  from  the  foxes; 


"  EAKTH  "  OF  THE  FOX. 

but  this  does  not  make  them  wild  toward  man.  In  the 
Falklands,  the  sportsman  may  sometimes  kill  more  of  the 
upland  geese  in  one  day  than  he  can  carry  home;  whereas 
in  Tierra  del  Fuego,  where  the  same  species  has  for  ages  past 
been  persecuted  by  the  wild  inhabitants,  it  is  nearly  as  diffi- 


80 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


FALKLAND  ISLANDS. 


WILD  GOOSE. 


cult  to  kill  one  as  it  is  in  England  to  shoot  the  common 

wild  goose.  In  the  time  of 
Pernety  (1763)  all  the  birds 
at  the  Falklands  appear  to 
have  been  much  tamer  than" 
at  present,  and  about  as  tame 
as  they  now  are  at  the  Gala- 
pagos. Even  formerly,  when 
all  the  birds  were  so  tame, 
it  was  impossible,  by  Perne- 
ty's  account,  to  kill  the  black- 
necked  swan — a  bird  of  pas- 
sage, which  probably  brought 
with  it  the  wisdom  learned  in  foreign  countries. 

From  these  several  facts  we  may,  I  think,  conclude  that 
there  is  no  way  of  accounting  for  the  wildness  of  birds  to- 
ward man  except  as  an 
inherited  habit.  Com- 
paratively few  young 
birds,  in  any  one  year, 
have  been  injured  by 
man  in  England,  yet  al- 
most all,  even  nestlings, 
are  afraid  of  him.  On 
the  other  hand,  many 
individual  birds,  both  at 
the  Galapagos  and  at 
the  Falklands,  have  been 
pursued  and  injured  by 


THE   OWL. 


THE  GRASSHOPPER— THE  LOCUST. 


81 


ATLANTIC  OCEAN. 


man,  but  yet  have  not  learned  a  wholesome  dread  of  him. 
From  these  facts,  too,  we  may  guess  what  havoc  the  intro- 
duction of  any  new  beast  of  prey  must  cause  in  a  country 
before  the  instincts  of  the  native  inhabitants  have  become 
adapted  to  the  stranger's  craft  or  poweiv 


THE    GRASSHOPPER. 

THE  most  remarkable  instance  I  have  known  of  an  insect 
being  caught  far  from  the 
land,  wTas  that  of  a  large 
grasshopper  (Acrydium), 
which  flew  on  board 
when  the  Beagle  was  to 
windward  of  the  Cape 
de  Verd  Islands,  aiid 
when  the  nearest  point 
of  land  not  directly  op- 
posed to  the  trade-wind 
was  Cape  Blanco,  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  three  hundred  and 
seventy  miles  distant. 


THE    GRASSHOPPER. 


THE    LOCUST. 

SHORTLY  before  we  arrived  at  Luxan  (province  of  Men-' 
doza,  La  Plata)  we  observed  to  the  south  a  ragged  cloud,  of 
a  dark   reddish -brown  color.     At  first  we  thought  that  it 
was  smoke  from  some  great  fire  on  the  plains;  but  we  soon 
found  that  it  Was  a  swarm  of  locusts.     They  were  flying 

6 


82 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


northward ;  and,  with  the  aid  of  a  light  breeze,  they  overtook 
us  at  a  rate  of  ten  or  fifteen  miles  an  hour.  The  main  body 
filled  the  air  from  a  height  of  twenty  feet  to  that,  as  it  ap- 
peared, of  two  or  three  thousand  above  the  ground ;  "  and  the 


LOCUSTS. 


sound  of  their  wings  was  as  the  sound  of  chariots  of  many 
horses  running  to  battle ;"  or  rather,  I  should  say,  like  a 
strong  breeze  passing  through  the  rigging  of  a  ship.  They 
were  not  so  thick  together  but  that  they  could  escape  a  stick 
waved  backward  and  forward.  The  poor  cottagers  in  vain 


THE  ANT. 


83 


BRAZIL. 


attempted,  by  lighting  fires,  by  shouts,  and  by  waving 
branches,  to  ward  off  the  attack.  When  the  locusts  alighted 
they  were  more  numerous  than  the  leaves  in  the  field,  and 
the  surface  became  reddish  instead  of  green.  Locusts  are  not 
an  uncommon  pest  in  this  country ;  already,  during  this  sea- 
son, several  smaller  swarms  had  come  up  from  the  south, 
where,  as  apparently  in  all  other  parts  of  the  world,  th'ey  are 
bred  in  the  deserts. 


THE   ANT. 

A  SMALL  dark -colored  ant  sometimes  migrates  in  great 
numbers.  One  day,  at  Bahia,  my  attention  was  drawn  by 
observing  many  spiders,  cockroaches,  and  other  insects,  and 
some  lizards,  rushing  in  the  greatest  agitation  across  a  bare 


AN  ARMY  OF  ANTS. 


84  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

BRAZIL. 

piece  of  ground.  A  little  way  behind,  every  stalk  and  leaf 
was  blackened  by  a  small  ant.  The  swarm  having  crossed 
the  bare  space,  divided  itself  and  descended  an  old  wall. 
By  this  means  many  insects  were  fairly  enclosed ;  and  the 
efforts  which  the  poor  little  creatures  made  to  extricate 
themselves  from  such  a  death  were  wonderful.  When  the 
ants  came  to  the  road  they  changed  their  course,  and  in 
narrow  files  reascended  the  wall.  When  I  placed  a  small 
stone  so  as  to  intercept  one  of  the  lines,  the  whole  body  at- 
tacked it,  and  then  immediately  retired.  Shortly  afterward 
another  body  came  to  the  charge,  and  again  having  failed 
to  make  any  impression,  this  line  of  march  was  entirely 
given  up.  By  going  an  inch  round  the  file  might  have 
avoided  the  stone,  and  this  doubtless  would  have  happened 
if  it  had  been  there  in  the  beginning ;  but  having  been  at- 
tacked, the  lion-hearted  little  warriors  scorned  the  idea  of 
yielding. 

THE    WASP. 

I  WAS  much  interested  one  day  by  watching,  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Rio,  a  deadly  contest  between  a  Pepsis  and  a 
large  spider  of  the  genus  Lycosa.  The  wasp  made  a  sud- 
den dash  at  its  prey,  and  then  flew  away :  the  spider  was 
evidently  wounded,  for,  trying  to  escape,  it  rolled  down  a 
little  slope,  but  had  still  strength  enough  to  crawl  into  a 
thick  tuft  of  grass.  The  wasp  soon  returned,  and  seemed 
surprised  at  not  finding  its  victim  at  once.  It  then  com- 
menced as  regular  a  hunt  as  ever  hound  did  after  fox;  mak- 


THE  SPIDER. 


85 


ENGLAND. 


,|P*! 

/•~C-'«.  X\'C.  ;    v. 
V.  ., 


ing  short  half- circuits,  and 
all  the  time  rapidly  vibrat- 
ing its  wings  and  antennae. 
The  spider,  though  well  hid- 
den, was  soon  discovered; 
and  the  wasp,  evidently  still 
afraid  of  its  jaws,  inflicted 
two  stings  on  the  under  side 
of  its  thorax.  At  last,  care- 
fully examining  with  its  an- 
tennae the  now  motionless 
spider,  it  proceeded  to  drag 
away  the  body.  But  I  stopped  both  tyrant  and  prey. 


WASP  AND    SPIDER. 


THE    SPIDER. 

IT  is  well  known  that  most  British  spiders,  when  a  large 
insect  is  caught  in  their  webs,  try  to  cut  the  lines  and  set 
free  their  prey,  to  save  their  nets  from  being  entirely  spoiled. 
I  once,  however,  saw,  in  a  hot -house  in  Shropshire,  a  large 
female  wasp  caught  in  the  irregular  web  of  a  very  small 
spider,  and  this  spider,  instead  of  cutting  the  web,  most  per- 
severingly  continued  to  entangle  the  body,  and  especially 
the  wings,  of  its  prey.  The  wasp  at  first  aimed  in  vain  re- 
peated thrusts  with  its  sting  at  its  little  antagonist.  Pity- 
ing the  wasp,  after  allowing  it  to  struggle  for  more  than 
an  hour,  I  killed  it  and  put  it  back  into  the  web.  The 
spider  soon  returned;  and  an  hour  afterward  I  was  much 
surprised  to  find  it  with  its  jaws  buried  in  the  opening 


86  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


INDIAN   OCEAN. 


through  which  the  sting  is  thrust  out  by  the  living  wasp. 
I  drove  the  spider  away  two   or  three   times,  but  for   the 


THE  SPIDER  (Lycosa  gyrophora}. 

next  twenty-four  hours  I  always  found  it  again  sucking  at 
the  same  place.  It  became  much  swollen  by  the  juices  of 
its  prey,  which  was  many  times  larger  than  itself. 

THE   CRAB. 

THERE  is  found  on  Keeling  Island  a   crab  which  lives 
on  the  cocoa-nuts:   it  is  very  common  on   all  parts  of  the 


THE   KOBBER-CRAB. 


THE  CRAB.  89 


KEELING   ISLAND. 


dry  land,  and  grows  to  a  monstrous  size.  The  front  pair  of 
legs  end  in  very  strong  and  heavy  pincers,  and  the  last  pair 
are  fitted  with  others  weaker  and  much  narrower.  It  would 
at  first  be  thought  quite  impossible  for  a  crab  to  open  a 
strong  cocoa-nut  covered  with  the  husk;  but  Mr.  Liesk  as- 
sures me  that  he  has  repeatedly  seen  this  done.  The  crab 
begins  by  tearing  the  husk,  fibre  by  fibre,  and  always  from 
that  end  under  which  the  three  eye-holes  are  situated;  when 
this  is  completed,  the  crab  commences  hammering  with  its 
heavy  claws  on  one  of  the  eye-holes  till  an  opening  is  made. 
Then,  turning  round  its  body,  by  the  aid  of  its  narrow  pin- 
cers behind  it  draws  out  the  white  meat.  I  think  this  is 
as  curious  a  case  of  instinct  as  I  ever  heard  of,  and  likewise 
of  adaptation  in  structure  between  two  objects  apparently 
so  unconnected  by  nature  as  a  crab  and  a  cocoa-nut  tree. 
These  crabs  inhabit  deep  burrows,  which  they  hollow  out 
beneath  the  roots  of  trees,  and  where  they  accumulate  sur- 
prising quantities  of  the  picked  fibres  of  the  cocoa-nut  husk, 
on  which  they  rest  as  on  a  bed.  They  are  very  good  to  eat ; 
moreover,  under  the  tail  of  the  larger  ones  there  is  a  great 
mass  of  fat,  which,  when  melted,  sometimes  yields  as  much 
as  a  quart  bottle  full  of  clear  oil.  To  show  the  wonderful 
strength  of  the  front  pair  of  pincers,  I  may  mention  that 
Captain  Moresby  shut  one  up  in  a  strong  tin  box,  which  had 
held  biscuits,  the  lid  being  secured  with  wire;  but  the  crab 
turned  down  the  edges  and  escaped.  In  turning  down  the 
edges  it  actually  punched  many  small  holes  quite  through 
the  tin. 


II. 

MAN. 


THE    SAVAGE. 


SOUTH   AMERICA. 


"OERHAPS  nothing  is  more  certain  to  create  astonishment 
than  the  first  sight,  in  his  native  haunt,  of  a  barbarian 
— of  man  in  his  lowest  and  most  savage  state.  One's  mind 
hurries  back  over  past  centuries,  and  then  asks,  Could  our 
forefathers  have  been  men  like  these?  —  men  whose  very 


THE  LION  IN  HIS  DESERT. 


THE  FUEGIAN. 


93 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


signs  and  expressions  are  less  intelligible  to  us  than  those 
of  the  domesticated  animals;  men  who  do  not  possess  the 
instinct  of  those  ani- 
mals, nor  yet  appear 
to  boast  of  human  rea- 
son, or  at  least  of  arts 
which  result  from  that 
reason.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve it  is  possible  to 
describe  or  paint  the 
difference  between 
savage  and  civilized 
man.  It  is  the  differ- 
ence between  a  wild 
and  a  tame  animal  (only  greater,  because  in  man  there  is  a 
greater  power  of  improvement) ;  and  part  of  the  interest  in 
beholding  a  savage  is  the  same  which  would  make  every 
one  desire  to  see  the  lion  in  his  desert,  the  tiger  tearing  his 
prey  in  the  jungle,  or  the  rhinoceros  wandering  over  the 
wild  plains  of  Africa. 


THE   RHINOCEROS. 


THE    FUEGIAN". 

THE  Fuegians  of  Good  Success  Bay  are  a  very  different 
race  from  the  stunted,  miserable  wretches  farther  westward ; 
and  they  seem  closely  related  to  the  famous  Patagonians 
of  the  Strait  of  Magellan.  Their  only  garment  consists  of 
a  mantle  made  of  guanaco  skin,  with  the  wool  outside.  This 
they  wear  just  thrown  over  their  shoulders,  leaving  their 


94  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


TIERRA   DEL   FUEGO. 


persons  as  often  exposed  as  covered.  Their  skin  is  of  a 
dirty  coppery-red  color.  Their  chief  spokesman,  an  old  man, 
had  a  fillet  of  white  feathers  tied  round  his  head,  which 
partly  confined  his  black,  coarse,  and  entangled  hair.  His 
face  was  crossed  by  two  broad  bars :  one,  painted  bright  red, 
reached  from  ear  to  ear,  and  included  the  upper  lip ;  the  oth- 
er, white  like  chalk,  stretched  above  the  first  so  that  even 
his  eyelids  were  thus  colored.  His  two  companions,  younger 
and  powerful  men,  about  six  feet  high,  were  ornamented  by 
streaks  of  black  powder,  made  of  charcoal.  The  party  alto- 
gether closely  resembled  the  devils  which  come  on  the  stage 
in  plays  like  "  Der  Freischiitz." 

Their  very  attitudes  were  abject,  and  the  expression  of 
their  countenances  distrustful,  surprised,  and  startled.  After 
we  had  presented  them  with  some  scarlet  cloth,  which  they 
immediately  tied  round  their  necks,  they  became  good  friends. 
This  was  shown  by  the  old  man  patting  our  breasts  and  mak- 
ing a  chuckling  kind  of  noise,  as  people  do  when  feeding 
chickens.  I  walked  with  the  old  man,  and  this  demonstra- 
tion of  friendship  was  repeated  several  times,  ending  in  three 
hard  slaps,  which  were  given  me  on  the  breast  and  back  at 
the  same  time.  He  then  bared  his  bosom  for  me  to  return 
the  compliment,  which  being  done,  he  seemed  highly  pleased. 

The  language  of  these  people,  according  to  our  notions, 
scarcely  deserves  to  be  called  articulate.  Captain  Cook  has 
compared  it  to  a  man  clearing  his  throat;  but  certainly  no 
European  ever  cleared  his  throat  with  so  many  hoarse,  gut- 
tural and  clicking  sounds.  They  are  excellent  mimics :  as 
often  as  we  coughed,  or  yawned,  or  made  any  odd  motion, 


THE  FUEGIAN. 


95 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


they  immediately  imitated  us.  Some  of  our  party  began  to 
squint  and  look  awry ;  but  one  of  the  young  Fuegians  (whose 
whole  face  was  painted  black,  excepting  a  white  band  across 
his  eyes)  succeeded  in  making  far  more  hideous  grimaces. 
They  could  repeat  with  perfect  correctness  each  word  in  any 
sentence  we  addressed  them,  and  they  remembered  such 
words  for  some  time.  Yet  we  Europeans  all  know  how 
difficult  it  is  to  distinguish  apart  the  sounds  in  a  foreign 


NORTH  AMERICAN   INDIAN   (WJLNNEBAGO). 

language.  Which  of  us,  for  instance,  could  follow  an  Amer- 
ican Indian  through  a  sentence  of  more  than  three  words? 
All  savages  seem  to  have,  to  an  uncommon  degree,  this  power 
of  mimicry:  I  was  told,  almost  in  the  same  words,  of  the 
same  laughable  habit  among  the  South  African  Kaffirs ;  the 
Australians,  likewise,  have  long  been  notorious  for  being  able 
to  imitate  and  describe  the  gait  of  any  man  so  that  he  may 
be  recognized.  How  can  this  faculty  be  explained?  Does 
it  come  from  the  more  practised  habits  of  perception  and 


96 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


keener  senses  common  to  all  men  in  a  savage  state,  as  com- 
pared with  those  long  civilized? 

The  inhabitants  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  living  chiefly  upon 
shell-fish,  are  obliged  constantly  to  change  their  place  of  resi- 
dence; but  they  return  at  intervals  to  the  same  spots,  as  is 


AUSTRALIAN  ABORIGINES. 


evident  from  the  piles  of  old  shells,  which  must  often  amount 
to  many  tons  in  weight.  These  heaps  can  be  recognized  at 
a  long  distance  by  the  bright  green  color  of  certain  plants 
which  always  grow  on  them.  Among  these  are  the  wild 
celery  and  scurvy-grass,  two  very  serviceable  plants,  the  use 
of  which  has  not  been  discovered  by  the  natives.  The  Fue- 
gian  wigwam  resembles,  in  size  and  dimensions,  a  hay-cock. 


A   SOUTH   AFRICAN   KAFFIU. 

7 


THE  FUEGIAN.  99 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


It  consists  merely  of  a  few  broken  branches  stuck  in  the 
ground,  and  very  rudely  thatched  on  one  side  with  a  few 
tufts  of  grass  and  rushes.  The  whole  cannot  be  the  work 
of  an  hour,  and  it  is  only  used  for  a  few  days.  On  the  west 
coast,  however,  the  wigwams  are  rather  better,  for  they  are 
covered  with  seal-skins. 

While  going  one  day  on  shore  near  Wollastou  Island,  we 
pulled  alongside  a  canoe  with  six  Fuegians.  These  were  the 
most  abject  and  miserable  creatures  I  anywhere  beheld.  On 
the  east  coast  the  natives,  as  we  have  seen,  have  guanaco 
cloaks,  and  on  the  west  they  possess  seal -skins.  Among 
these  central  tribes  the  men  generally  have  an  otter-skin,  or 
some  small  scrap,  about  as  large  as  a  pocket-handkerchief, 
which  is  barely  sufficient  to  cover  their  backs  as  low  down 
as  their  loins.  It  is  laced  across  the  breast  by  strings,  and, 
according  as  the  wind  blows,  it  is  shifted  from  side  to  side. 
But  these  Fuegians  in  the  canoe  were  quite  naked,  and  even 
one  full-grown  woman  was  absolutely  so.  It  was  raining 
heavily,  and  the  fresh  water,  together  with  the  spray,  trickled 
down  her  body.  In  another  harbor,  not  far  distant,  a  woman 
who  was  suckling  a  newly-born  child  came  one  day  alongside 
the  vessel,  and  remained  there,  out  of  mere  curiosity,  while 
the  sleet  fell  and  thawed  on  her  naked  bosom  and  on  the 
skin  of  her  naked  baby !  These  poor  wretches  were  stunted 
in  their  growth,  their  hideous  faces  bedaubed  with  white 
paint,  their  skins  filthy  and  greasy,  their  hair  entangled,  their 
voices  discordant,  and  their  gestures  violent.  Viewing  such 
men,  one  can  hardly  make  one's  self  believe  that  they  are 
fellow -creatures,  and  inhabitants  of  the  same  world.  We 


100 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


often  try  to  imagine  what  pleasure  in  life  some  of  the  lower 
animals  can  enjoy :  how  much  more  reasonably  the  same 
question  may  be  asked  concerning  these  barbarians !  At 
night  five  or  six  human  beings,  naked,  and  scarcely  protected 
from  the  wind  and  rain  of  this  tempestuous  climate,  sleep  on 
the  wet  ground,  coiled  up  like  animals.  Whenever  it  is  low 


m 


A  FUEGIAN   FKAST. 


water — winter  or  summer,  night  or  day — they  must  rise  to 
pick  shell- fish  from  the  rocks;  and  the  women  either  dive 
to  collect  sea-eggs  or  sit  patiently  in  their  canoes,  and  with 
a  baited  hair-line,  without  any  hook,  jerk  out  little  fish.  If 
a  seal  is  killed,  or  the  floating  carcass  of  a  putrid  whale  dis- 
covered, it  is  a  feast;  and  such  miserable  food  is  assisted  by 
a  few  tasteless  berries  and  fungi. 


THE  FUEGIAN.  101 


TIERRA    DEL   FUEGO. 


They  often  suffer  from  famine :  I  heard  Mr.  Low,  a  seal- 
ing-master  very  well  acquainted  with  the  natives  of  this  coun- 
try, give  a  curious  account  of  the  state  of  a  party  of  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  natives  on  the  west  coast,  who  were  very  thin, 
and  in  great  distress.  A  succession  of  gales  prevented  the 
women  from  getting  shell-fish  on  the  rocks,  and  they  could 
not  go  out  in  their  canoes  to  catch  seal.  A  small  party  of 
these  men  one  morning  set  out  on  a  four  days'  journey  for 
food ;  on  their  return  Low  went  to  meet  them,  and  found 
them  excessively  tired  —  each  man  carrying  a  great  square 
piece  of  putrid  whale's -blubber,  with  a  hole  in  the  mid- 
dle, through  which  he  put  his  head,  as  the  Gauchos  do 
through  their  ponchos  or  cloaks.  As  soon  as  the  blubber 
was  brought  into  a  wigwam  an  old  man  cut  off  the  slices, 
and,  muttering  over  them,  broiled  them  for  a  minute,  and 
distributed  them  to  the  famished  party,  who,  during  this 
time,  preserved  a  profound  silence.  Mr.  Low  believes  that 
whenever  a  whale  is  cast  on  shore  the  natives  bury  large 
pieces  of  it  in  the  sand  as  a  resource  in  time  of  famine.  The 
different  tribes,  when  at  war,  are  cannibals;  and  it  is  cer- 
tainly true  that,  when  pressed  in  winter  by  hunger,  they  kill 
and  devour  their  old  women  before  they  kill  their  dogs.  A 
boy,  being  asked  by  Mr.  Low  why  they  did  this,  answered : 
"Doggies  catch  otters,  old  women  no." 

Few,  if  any,  of  the  natives  in  the  Beagle  Channel  could 
ever  have  seen  a  white  man ;  certainly  nothing  could  exceed 
their  astonishment  at  the  sight  of  our  four  boats.  Fires  were 
lighted  on  every  point  (hence  the  name  of  Tierra  del  Fuego, 
or  the  land  of  fire),  both  to  attract  our  attention  and  to 


102  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

TIERRA   DEL   FUEGO. 

spread  far  and  wide  the  news.  Some  of  the  men  ran  for 
miles  along  the  shore.  I  shall  never  forget  how  wild  and 
savage  one  group  appeared :  suddenly  four  or  five  men  came 
to  the  edge  of  an  overhanging  cliff;  they  were  absolutely 
naked,  and  their  long  hair  streamed  about  their  faces.  They 
held  rough  staves  in  their  hands,  and,  springing  from  the 
ground,  waved  their  arms  round  their  heads,  and  sent  forth 
the  most  hideous  yells.  At  dinner-time  we  landed  among  a 
party  of  Fuegians.  At  first  they  were  not  inclined  to  be 
friendly,  for,  until  Captain  Fitz  Roy  pulled  in  ahead  of  the 
other  boats,  they  kept  their  slings  in  their  hands.  We  soon, 
however,  delighted  them  by  trifling  presents,  such  as  tying 
red  tape  round  their  heads.  They  liked  our  biscuit :  but  one 
of  the  savages  touched  with  his  finger  some  of  the  meat,  pre- 
served in  tin  cases,  which  I  was  eating,  and  feeling  it  soft  and 
cold,  he  showed  as  much  disgust  at  it  as  I  should  have  done 
at  putrid  blubber.  It  was  as  easy  to  please  as  it  was  hard 
to  satisfy  these  savages.  Young  and  old,  men  and  children, 
never  ceased  repeating  the  word  "  Yammerschooner,"  which 
means  "  give  me,"  and  pointing  to  almost  every  object,  one 
after  the  other,  even  to  the  buttons  on  our  coats.  At  night 
we  slept  close  to  the  junction  of  Ponsonby  Sound  with  the 
Beagle  Channel.  A  small  family  of  Fuegians,  who  were  liv- 
ing in  the  cove,  were  quiet  and  inoffensive,  and  soon  joined 
our  party  round  a  blazing  fire.  We  were  well  clothed,  and, 
though  sitting  close  to  the  fire,  were  far  from  too  warm ;  yet 
these  naked  savages,  though  farther  off,  were  observed,  to  our 
great  surprise,  to  be  streaming  with  perspiration  from  such  a 
roasting.  They  seemed,  however,  very  well  pleased,  and  all 


THE  FUEGIAN. 


103 


PACIFIC  OCEAN. 


joined  in  the  chorus  of  the  seamen's  songs;  but  the  way  in 
which  they  were  always  behindhand  was  very  ludicrous. 

I  believe  that  man,  in  this  extreme  part  of  South  America, 
exists  in  a  lower  state  of  improvement  than  in  any  other 
part  of  the  world.  The  South  Sea  Islanders,  of  the  two  races 
inhabiting  the  Pacific,  are  comparatively  civilized.  The  Es- 


'  r'"'1  I  \      \*  \\w\\ 

SOUTH   SEA   ISLANDERS. 


kimo,  in  his  underground  hut,  enjoys  some  of  the  comforts 
of  life,  and  in  his  canoe,  when  fully  equipped,  shows  much 
skill.  Some  of  the  tribes  of  Southern  Africa,  prowling  about 
in  search  of  roots,  and  living  hid  on  the  wild  and  parched 
plains,  are  wretched  enough.  The  Australian,  in  the  sim- 
plicity of  the  arts  of  life,  comes  nearest  the  Fuegian ;  he  can, 


104 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


BUSHMEN  OF   SOUTH   AFRICA. 


however,  boast  of  his  boomerang,  his  spear  and  thro  wing- 
stick  ;  his  mode  of  climbing  trees,  of  tracking  animals,  and  of 
hunting.  But  although  the  Australian  may  be  superior  in 
acquirements,  it  by  no  means  follows  that  he  is  likewise  su- 
perior in  mental  capacity.  Indeed,  from  what  I  saw  of  the 
Fuegians,  and  from  what  I  have  read  of  the  Australians,  I 
should  think  the  opposite  wras  true. 


THE  PATAGONIAN. 

AT  Cape  Gregory  the  famous  so-called  gigantic  Patago- 
nians   gave   us   a   hearty   reception.      Their   height   appears 


THE  INDIAN  OF  THE  PAMPAS.  105 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


greater  than  it  really  is,  from  their  large  guanaco  mantles, 
their  long  flowing  hair,  and  general  figure :  on  an  average 
their  height  is  about  six  feet,  with  some  men  taller,  and  only 
a  few  shorter ;  and  the  women  are  also  tall.  Altogether  they 
are  certainly  the  tallest  race  that  we  anywhere  saw.  In  feat- 
ures they  strikingly  resemble  the  more  northern  Indians 
whom  I  saw  with  Rosas,  but  they  have  a  wilder  and  more 
formidable  appearance:  their  faces  were  much  painted  with 
red  and  black,  and  one  man  was  ringed  and  dotted  with 
white,  like  a  Fuegian.  Captain  Fitz  Roy  offered  to  take  any 
three  of  them  on  board,  and  all  seemed  determined  to  be  of 
the  three:  it  was  long  before  we  could  clear  the  boat.  At 
last  we  got  on  board  with  our  three  giants,  who  dined  with 
the  captain  and  behaved  quite  like  gentlemen,  helping  them- 
selves with  knives,  forks,  and  spoons :  nothing  was  so  much 
relished  as  sugar.  The  tribe  spend  the  greater  part  of  the 
year  here,  but  in  summer  they  hunt  along  the  foot  of  the 
Cordillera;  sometimes  they  travel  as  far  as  the  Rio  Negro, 
seven  hundred  and  fifty  miles  to  the  north.  They  are  well 
stocked  with  horses,  each  man  having,  according  to  Mr.  Low, 
six  or  seven,  and  all  the  women,  and  even  the  children,  their 
one  own  horse.  Mr.  Low  informs  me  that  a  neighboring  tribe 
of  foot-Indians  is  now  (1834)  changing  into  horse-Indians. 

THE  INDIAN  OF  THE  PAMPAS. 

WE  stayed  two  days  at  the  Colorado,  near  the  encamp- 
ment of  General  Rosas.  My  chief  amusement  was  watching 
the  Indian  families,  as  they  came  to  buy  little  articles  at  the 


106 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


rancho   where   we   stayed.      It  wras   supposed  that   General 
Eosas  had  about  six  hundred  Indian  allies.     The  men  were 


LENGUA  INDIANS   (BASIN    OF   THE  PLATE   RIVER). 

a  tall,  fine  race,  yet  it  was  afterward  easy  to  see  in  the  Fue- 
gian  savage  the  same  countenance  made  hideous  by  cold, 
want  of  food,  and  less  civilization.  Among  the  young  wom- 
en, or  chinas,  some  deserve  to  be  called  even  beautiful.  Their 
hair  was  coarse,  but  bright  and  black,  and  they  wore  it  in 
two  plaits,  hanging  down  to  the  waist.  They  had  a  high 
color,  and  eyes  that  glistened  with  brilliancy.  Their  legs, 
feet,  and  arms  were  small,  and  elegantly  formed ;  their  ankles, 
and  sometimes  their  waists,  were  ornamented  by  broad  brace- 
lets of  blue  beads.  Nothing  could  be  more  interesting  than 
some  of  the  family  groups.  A  mother  with  one  or  two 


THE  INDIAN  OF  THE  PAMPAS. 


107 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


daughters  would  often  come  to  our  rancho  mounted  upon 
the  same  horse.  They  ride  like  men,  but  with  their  knees 
tucked  up  higher;  a  habit  which  comes,  perhaps,  of  their 
being  accustomed,  when  travelling,  to  ride  the  loaded  horses. 
The  duty  of  the  women  is  to  load  and  unload  the  horses;  to 
make  the  tents  for  the  night;  in  short,  to  be,  like  the  wives 
of  all  savages,  useful  slaves.  The  men  fight,  hunt,  take  care 
of  the  horses,  and  make  the  riding-gear.  One  of  their  chief 
in-door  occupations  is  to  knock  two  stones  together  till  they 
become  round,  in  order  to  make  the  bolas.  With  this  im- 
portant weapon  the  Indian  catches  his  game,  and  also  his 


SOLDIERS   OF   GENERAL   11OSAS. 


horse,  which  roams  free  over  the  plain.     In  fighting,  his  first 
attempt  is  to  throw  down  his  enemy's  horse  with  the  bolas, 


108  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


and  when  entangled  by  the  fall,  to  kill  him  with  his  pike 
(chuzd).  If  the  bolas  only  catch  the  neck  or  body  of  an 
animal,  they  are  often  carried  away  and  lost.  As  the  mak- 
ing of  the  stones  round  is  the  labor  of  two  days,  the  manu- 
facture of  the  balls  is  a  very  common  employment.  Several 
of  the  men  and  women  had  their  faces  painted  red,  but  I  nev- 
er saw  the  horizontal  bands  which  are  so  common  among  the 
Fuegians.  Their  chief  pride  consists  in  having  everything 
made  of  silver.  I  have  seen  a  cacique  with  his  spurs,  stir- 
rups, handle  of  his  knife,  and  bridle,  made  of  this  metal. 
The  headstall  and  reins,  being  of  wire,  were  not  thicker  than 
whip-cord ;  and  to  see  a  fiery  steed  wheeling  about  under  the 
command  of  so  light  a  chain  gave  to  the  horsemanship  a  re- 
markable character  of  elegance. 

The  chief  Indians  always  have  one  or  two  picked  horses, 
which  they  keep  ready  for  any  urgent  occasion.  When  the 
troops  of  General  Rosas  first  arrived  at  Cholechel  they  found 
there  a  tribe  of  Indians,  of  whom  they  killed  twenty  or  thirty. 
The  cacique  escaped  in  a  manner  which  astonished  every  one. 
He  sprang  upon  an  old  white  horse,  taking  with  him  his  lit- 
tle son.  The  horse  had  neither  saddle  nor  bridle.  To  avoid 
the  shots,  the  Indian  rode  in  the  peculiar  manner  of  his  na- 
tion, namely,  with  an  arm  round  the  horse's  neck,  and  one 
leg  only  on  its  back.  Thus  hanging  on  one  side,  he  was  seen 
patting  the  horse's  head,  and  talking  to  him.  The  pursuers 
made  every  effort  in  the  chase ;  the  commandant  three  times 
changed  his  horse;  but  all  in  vain.  The  old  Indian  father 
and  his  son  escaped  and  were  free.  What  a  fine  picture  one 
can  form  in  one's  mind — the  naked,  bronze-like  figure  of  the 


THE  INDIAN  OF  THE  PAMPAS.  109 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


old  man,  with  his  little  boy,  riding  like  Mazeppa  on  the 
white  horse,  thus  leaving  far  behind  him  the  host  of  pursuers ! 

In  a  battle  at  the  small  Salinas  a  tribe,  consisting  of  about 
one  hundred  and  ten  Indians,  men,  women,  and  children,  were 
nearly  all  taken  or  killed.  Four  men  ran  away  together. 
They  were  pursued :  one  was  killed,  and  the  other  three  were 
taken  alive.  They  turned  out  to  be  messengers  from  a  large 
body  of  Indians,  united  in  the  common  cause  of  defence,  near 
the  Cordillera.  The  tribe  to  which  they  had  been  sent  was 
on  the  point  of  holding  a  grand  council ;  the  feast  of  mare's 
flesh  was  ready,  and  the  dance  prepared :  in  the  morning  the 
messengers  were  to  have  returned  to  the  Cordillera.  They 
were  remarkably  fine  men,  very  fair,  above  six  feet  high,  and 
all  under  thirty  years  of  age.  The  three  survivors,  of  course, 
possessed  very  valuable  information,  and  to  extort  this  they 
were  placed  in  a  line.  The  two  first,  being  questioned,  an- 
swered, "  No  se "  (I  do  not  know),  and  were  one  after  the 
other  shot.  The  third  also  said  "  No  se ;"  adding,  "  Fire !  I 
am  a  man,  and  can  die!"  Not  one  syllable  would  they 
breathe  to  injure  the  united  cause  of  their  country. 

During  my  stay  at  Bahia  Blanca,  while  waiting  for  the 
Beagle,  an  account  came  that  a  small  party,  forming  one  of 
the  postas  on  the  line  to  Buenos  Ayres,  had  been  found  all 
murdered.  The  next  day  three  hundred  men  arrived  from 
the  Colorado,  a  large  portion  of  whom  were  Indians,  and 
passed  the  night  here.  In  the  morning  they  started  for  the 
scene  of  the  murder,  with  orders  to  follow  the  rastro  or  track, 
even  if  it  led  them  to  Chile.  One  glance  at  the  rastro  tells 
these  people  a  whole  history.  Supposing  they  examine  the 


110  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


track  of  a  thousand  horses,  they  will  soon  guess  the  number 
of  mounted  ones  by  seeing  how  many  have  cantered ;  by  the 
depth  of  the  other  impressions,  whether  any  horses  were 
loaded  with  cargoes;  by  the  irregularity  of  the  footsteps, 
how  far  tired ;  by  the  manner  in  which  the  food  has  been 
cooked,  whether  the  pursued  travelled  in  haste ;  by  the  gen- 
eral appearance,  how  long  it  has  been  since  they  passed. 
They  consider  a  rastro  ten  days  or  a  fortnight  old  quite  re- 
cent enough  to  be  hunted  out. 

In  journeying  from  the  Rio  Negro  to  the  Colorado  we 
came  in  sight  of  a  famous  tree,  which  the  Indians  reverence 
as  the  altar  of  Walleechu.  It  stands  on  a  high  part  of  the 
plain,  and  hence  is  a  landmark  visible  at  a  great  distance. 
As  soon  as  a  tribe  of  Indians  come  in  sight  of  it  they  offer 
their  adorations  by  loud  shouts.  The  tree  itself  is  low,  much 
branched,  and  thorny:  just  above  the  root  it  has  a  diameter 
of  about  three  feet.  It  stands  by  itself,  without  any  neigh- 
bor, and  was  indeed  the  first  tree  we  saw ;  afterward  we  met 
with  a  few  others  of  the  same  kind,  but  they  were  far  from 
common.  Being  winter,  the  tree  had  no  leaves,  but  in  their 
place  numberless  threads,  by  which  the  various  offerings,  such 
as  cigars,  bread,  meat,  pieces  of  cloth,  etc.,  had  been  hung 
upon  it.  Poor  Indians,  not  having  anything  better,  only 
pull  a  thread  out  of  their  ponchos  and  fasten  it  to  the  tree. 
Richer  Indians  are  accustomed  to  pour  spirits  and  mate  (tea) 
into  a  certain  hole,  and  likewise  to  smoke  upward,  thinking 
thus  to  afford  all  possible  gratification  to  Walleechu.  To 
complete  the  scene,  the  tree  was  surrounded  by  the  bleached 
bones  of  horses  which  had  been  slaughtered  as  sacrifices. 


THE  NEGRO.  Ill 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


All  Indians,  of  every  age  and  sex,  make  their  offerings ;  they 
then  think  that  their  horses  will  not  tire,  and  that  they  them- 
selves shall  be  prosperous.  The  Gaucho  who  told  me  this 
said  that,  in  the  time  of  peace,  he  had  witnessed  this  scene, 
and  that  he  and  others  used  to  wait  till  the  Indians  had 
passed  by,  for  the  sake  of  stealing  from  Walleechu  the  offer- 
ings. The  Gauchos  think  that  the  Indians  consider  the  tree 
as  the  god  himself;  but  it  seems  far  more  probable  that  they 
regard  it  as  his  altar. 


THE    NEGRO. 

WE  determined  to  pass  the  night  at  one  of  the  post- 
houses,  a  day's  ride  from  Bahia  Blanca.  This  posta  was  com- 
manded by  a  negro  lieutenant,  born  in  Africa;  and,  to  his 
credit  be  it  said,  there  was  not  a  ranch o  between  the  Colo- 
rado and  Buenos  Ayres  in  nearly  such  neat  order  as  his.  He 
had  a  little  room  for  strangers,  and  a  small  corral  for  the 
horses,  all  made  of  sticks  and  reeds ;  he  had  also  dug  a  ditch 
round  his  house  as  a  defence,  in  case  of  being  attacked.  This 
would,  however,  have  been  of  little  avail  if  the  Indians  had 
come;  but  his  chief  comfort  seemed  to  rest  in  the  thought 
of  selling  his  life  dearly.  A  short  time  before,  a  body  of 
Indians  had  travelled  past  in  the  night ;  if  they  had  known 
of  the  posta,  our  black  friend  and  his  four  soldiers  would 
assuredly  have  been  slaughtered.  I  did  not  anywhere  meet 
a  more  civil  and  obliging  man  than  this  negro;  it  was  there- 
fore the  more  painful  to  see  that  he  would  not  sit  down  and 
eat  with  us. 


112 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


BRAZIL. 


While  in  Brazil,  not  far  from  Itacaia,  we  passed  under 
one  of  the  massive,  bare,  and  steep  hills  of  granite  which  are 
so  common  in  this  country.  This  spot  is  notorious  from 
having  been,  for  a  long  time,  the  residence  of  some  runaway 
slaves,  who,  by  cultivating  a  little  ground  near  the  top,  con- 
trived to  eke  out  a  living.  At  length  they  were  discovered, 


IB 


A  POST   ON  THE   PAMPAS. 


and  a  party  of  soldiers  being  sent,  the  whole  were  seized, 
with  the  exception  of  one  old  woman,  who,  sooner  than  again 
be  led  into  slavery,  dashed  herself  to  pieces  from  the  summit 
of  the  mountain.  In  a  Roman  matron  this  would  have  been 
called  the  noble  love  of  freedom ;  in  a  poor  negress  it  is  mere 
brutal  obstinacy. 


THE  NEGRO.  113 


BRAZIL. 


During  our  stay  at  an  estate  on  the  river  Macahe,  I  was 
very  near  being  an  eye-witness  to  one  of  those  atrocious  acts 
which  can  only  take  place  in  a  slave  country.  Owing  to  a 
quarrel  and  a  lawsuit,  the  owner  was  on  the  point  of  taking 
all  the  women  and  children  from  the  male  slaves,  and  selling 
them  separately  at  the  public  auction  at  Rio.  Self-interest, 
and  not  any  feeling  of  pity,  prevented  this  act.  Indeed,  I 
do  not  believe  the  inhumanity  of  separating  thirty  families, 
who  had  lived  together  for  many  years,  ever  occurred  to  the 
owner.  Yet  I  will  pledge  myself  that  in  humanity  and  good 
feeling  he  was  better  than  the  common  run  of  men.  It  may 
be  said  there  is  no  limit  to  the  blindness  of  interest  and  self- 
ish habit.  I  may  mention  one  very  trifling  incident  which, 
at  the  time,  struck  me  more  forcibly  than  any  story  of  cruelty. 
I  was  crossing  a  ferry  with  a  negro  who  was  uncommonly 
stupid.  In  endeavoring  to  make  him  understand,  I  talked 
loud  and  made  signs,  in  doing  which  I  passed  my  hand  near 
his  face.  He,  I  suppose,  thought  I  was  in  a  passion  and  was 
going  to  strike  him,  for  instantly,  with  a  frightened  look  and 
half-shut  eyes,  he  dropped  his  hands.  I  shall  never  forget 
my  feelings  of  surprise,  disgust,  and  shame  at  seeing  a  great 
powerful  man  afraid  even  to  ward  off  a  blow,  directed,  as  he 
thought,  at  his  face.  This  man  had  been  trained  to  a  degra- 
dation lower  than  the  slavery  of  the  most  helpless  animal. 

On  the  19th  of  August,  1836,  we  finally  left  the  shores  of 
Brazil.  I  thank  God  I  shall  never  again  visit  a  slave  country. 
To  this  day,  if  I  hear  a  distant  scream,  it  recalls  with  pain- 
ful vividness  my  feelings  when,  passing  a  house  near  Pernam- 
buco,  I  heard  the  most  pitiable  moans,  and  could  not  but 

8 


114 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


BRAZIL. 


suspect  that  some  poor  slave  was  being  tortured,  yet  knew 
that  I  was  as  powerless  as  a  child  even  to  remonstrate.  I 
suspected  that  these  moans  were  from  a  tortured  slave,  for  I 
was  told  that  this  was  the  case  in  another  instance.  Near 
Rio  de  Janeiro  I  lived  opposite  to  an  old  lady  who  kept 
screws  to  crush  the  fingers  of  her  female  slaves.  I  have 


PERNAMBUCO. 


stayed  in  a  house  where  a  young  household  mulatto,  daily 
and  hourly,  was  reviled,  beaten,  and  persecuted  enough  to 
break  the  spirit  of  the  lowest  animal.  I  have  seen  a  little 
boy,  six  or  seven  years  old,  struck  thrice  with  a  horsewhip 
(before  I  could  interfere)  on  his  naked  head,  for  having  hand- 
ed me  a  glass  of  water  not  quite  clean.  I  saw  his  father 


THE  NEGRO.  115 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


tremble  at  a  mere  glance  from  his  master's  eye.  These  latter 
cruelties  were  witnessed  by  me  in  a  Spanish  colony,  in  which 
it  has  always  been  said  that  slaves  are  better  treated  than 
by  the  Portuguese,  English,  or  other  European  nations.  I 
will  not  even  allude  to  the  many  heart -sickening  atrocities 
which  I  heard  of  on  good  authority ;  nor  would  I  have  men- 
tioned the  above  revolting  details,  had  I  not  met  with  sev- 
eral people  so  blinded  by  the  natural  gayety  of  the  negro  as 
to  speak  of  slavery  as  a  tolerable  evil.  Such  people  have 
generally  visited  at  the  houses  of  the  upper  classes,  where 
the  domestic  slaves  are  usually  well  treated — and  they  have 
not,  like  myself,  lived  among  the  lower  classes.  Such  in- 
quirers will  ask  slaves  about  their  condition :  they  forget  that 
the  slave  must  indeed  be  dull  who  does  not  calculate  on  the 
chance  of  his  answer  reaching  his  master's  ears. 

It  is  argued  that  self-interest  will  prevent  excessive  cru- 
elty; as  if  self-interest  protected  our  domestic  animals,  which 
are  far  less  likely  than  degraded  slaves  to  stir  up  the  rage 
of  their  savage  masters.  One  day,  riding  in  the  Pampas  with 
a  very  respectable  planter  (estanciero),  my  horse,  being  tired, 
lagged  behind.  The  man  often  shouted  to  me  to  spur  him. 
When  I  remonstrated  that  it  was  a  pity,  for  the  horse  was 
quite  exhausted,  he  cried  out,  "Why  not?  Never  mind;  spur 
him — it  is  my  horse."  I  had  then  some  difficulty  in  making 
him  understand  that  it  was  for  the  horse's  sake,  and  not  on 
his  account,  that  I  did  not  choose  to  use  my  spurs.  He  ex- 
claimed, with  a  look  of  great  surprise,  "Ah,  Don  Carlos,  que 
cosa !"  (what  an  idea).  It  was  clear  that  such  an  idea  had 
never  before  entered  his  head. 


116  WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 

URUGUAY.  ~ 

Those  who  look  tenderly  at  the  slave-owner,  and  with  a 
cold  heart  at  the  slave,  never  seem  to  put  themselves  in  the 
position  of  the  latter.  What  a  cheerless  picture,  with  not 
even  a  hope  of  change !  Picture  to  yourself  the  chance,  ever 
hanging  over  you,  of  your  wife  and  little  children  being  torn 
from  you  and  sold  to  the  highest  bidder!  And  these  deeds 
are  done  and  excused  by  men  who  profess  to  love  their  neigh- 
bors as  themselves — who  believe  in  God,  and  pray  that  his 
will  be  done  on  earth !  It  makes  one's  blood  boil,  yet  heart 
tremble,  to  think  that  we  Englishmen,  and  our  American  de- 
scendants, with  their  boastful  cry  of  liberty,  have  been  and 
are  so  guilty:  but  it  is  a  consolation  to  reflect  that  we,  at 
least,  have  made  a  greater  sacrifice  than  was  ever  made  by 
any  nation  to  expiate  our  sin.* 


THE    GATJCHO. 

AT  Las  Minas  we  stopped  overnight  at  a  pulperia,  or 
drinking-shop.  During  the  evening  a  great  number  of  Gau- 
chos  came  in  to  drink  spirits  and  smoke  cigars.  Their  ap- 
pearance is  very  striking:  they  are  generally  tall  and  hand- 
some, but  with  a  proud  and  dissolute  expression  of  counte- 
nance. They  often  wear  their  mustaches,  and  long  black 
hair  curling  down  their  backs.  With  their  bright -colored 
garments,  great  spurs  clanking  about  their  heels,  and  knives 
stuck  as  daggers  (and  often  so  used)  at  their  waists,  they 

*  Slavery  was  finally  abolished  in  the  British  West  Indies  in  1834-1838; 
in  the  United  States  by  the  civil  war  of  1861-1865. 


THE  GAUCHO. 


117 


URUGUAY. 


look  a  different  race  of  men  from  what  might  be  expected 
from  their  name  of  Gauchos,  or  simple  countrymen.  Their 
politeness  is  excessive;  they  never  drink  their  spirits  with- 
out expecting  you  to  taste  it ;  but,  while  making  their  ex- 
ceedingly graceful  bow,  they  seem  quite  as  ready,  if  occasion 
offered,  to  cut  your  throat. 


i_>:-_ 


THE  GAUCHO. 


The  Gauchos  are  well  known  to  be  perfect  riders.  The 
idea  of  being  thrown,  let  the  horse  do  what  it  likes,  never 
enters  their  head.  Their  test  of  a  good  rider  is  a  man  who 
can  manage  an  untamed  colt,  or  who,  if  his  horse  falls,  alights 
on  his  own  feet,  or  can  perform  other  such  exploits.  I  have 
heard  of  a  man  betting  that  he  would  throw  his  horse  down 


118  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE   AND  PERU. 


twenty  times,  and  that  nineteen  times  he  would  not  fall  him- 
self. I  recollect  seeing  a  Gaucho  riding  a  very  stubborn 
horse,  which  three  times  in  succession  reared  so  high  as  to 
fall  backward  with  great  violence.  The  man  judged  with 
uncommon  coolness  the  proper  moment  for  slipping  off — not 
an  instant  before  or  after  the  right  time — and  as  soon  as  the 
horse  got  up  the  man  jumped  on  his  back,  and  at  last  they 
started  at  a  gallop.  The  Gaucho  never  appears  to  exert  any 
muscular  force.  I  was  one  day  watching  a  good  rider,  as  we 
were  galloping  along  at  a  rapid  pace,  and  thought  to  myself, 
"  Surely,  if  the  horse  starts,  you  appear  so  careless  on  your 
seat,  you  must  fall."  At  this  moment  a  male  ostrich  sprung 
from  its  nest  right  beneath  the  horse's  nose.  The  young 
colt  bounded  on  one  side  like  a  stag;  but  as  for  the  man, 
all  that  could  be  said  was  that  he  started  and  took  fright 
with  his  horse.  I  was  surprised  to  hear  the  Gauchos,  who 
have  from  infancy  almost  lived  on  horseback,  say  that  they 
always  suffered  from  stiffness  when,  not  having  ridden  for 
some  time,  they  first  began  again.  One  of  them  told  me  that, 
having  been  confined  for  three  months  by  illness,  he  went 
out  hunting  wild  cattle,  and,  in  consequence,  for  the  next 
ten  days  his  thighs  were  so  stiff  that  he  was  obliged  to  lie 
in  bed.  This  shows  that  the  Gauchos  must  really  exert 
much  muscular  effort  in  riding. 

In  Chile  and  Peru  more  pains  are  taken  with  the  mouth 
of  the  horse  than  in  La  Plata,  evidently  because  of  the  more 
intricate  nature  of  the  country.  In  Chile  a  horse  is  not  con- 
sidered perfectly  broken  till  he  can  be  brought  up  standing, 
in  the  midst  of  his  full  speed,  on  any  particular  spot — for 


THE  GAUCHO. 


119 


CHILE. 


instance,  on  a  cloak  thrown  on  the  ground :  or,  again,  he  will 
charge  a  wall,  and  rearing,  scrape  the  surface  with  his  hoofs. 
I  have  seen  an  animal  bounding  with  spirit,  yet  merely  rein- 
ed by  a  forefinger  and  thumb,  taken  at  full  gallop  across  a 
court-yard,  then  made  to  wheel  round  the  post  of  a  veranda 
with  great  speed,  but  at  so  equal  a  distance  that  the  rider, 
with  outstretched  arm,  all  the  w7hile  kept  one  finger  rub- 
bing the  post;  then  making  a  demivolt  in  the  air,  with 
the  man's  other  arm  outstretched  in  a  like  manner,  he  wheel- 
ed round,  with  astonishing  force,  in  an  opposite  direction. 


NOT  TO  BE  THROWN. 


Such  a  horse  is  well  broken :  and  although  this  at  first 
may  appear  useless,  it  is  far  otherwise.  It  is  only  carrying 
to  perfection  a  daily  necessity.  When  a  bullock  is  checked 


120  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


and  caught  by  the  lazo,  it  will  sometimes  gallop  round  and 
round  in  a  circle;  and  the  horse,  being  alarmed  at  the  great 
strain,  if  not  well  broken,  will  not  readily  turn  like  the  pivot 
of  a  wheel.  In  consequence,  many  men  have  been  killed; 
for  if  the  lazo  once  takes  a  twist  round  a  man's  body,  it  will 
instantly,  from  the  power  of  the  two  opposed  animals,  al- 
most cut  him  in  twain.  A  man  on  horseback,  having  thrown 
his  lazo  round  the  horns  of  a  beast,  can  drag  it  anywhere 
he  chooses.  The  animal,  ploughing  up  the  ground  with 
outstretched  legs,  in  vain  efforts  to  resist  the  force,  gener- 
ally dashes  at  full  speed  to  one  side;  but  the  horse,  im- 
mediately turning  to  receive  the  shock,  stands  so  firmly  that 
the  bullock  is  almost  thrown  down,  and  it  is  surprising  that 
their  necks  are  not  broken.  The  struggle  is  not,  however, 
one  of  fair  strength,  since  the  horse's  girth  is  matched  against 
the  bullock's  extended  neck.  In  a  similar  manner  a  man 
can  hold  the  wildest  horse,  if  caught  with  the  lazo  just  be- 
hind the  ears. 

The  lazo  is  a  very  strong,  but  thin,  well-plaited  rope,  made 
of  raw  hide.  One  end  is  attached  to  the  broad  surcingle 
which  fastens  together  the  complicated  gear  of  the  recado,  or 
saddle  used  in  the  Pampas;  at  the  other  end  is  a  small  ring 
of  iron  or  brass,  by  which  a  noose  can  be  formed.  The  Gau- 
cho,  when  he  is  going  to  use  the  lazo,  keeps  a  small  coil  in 
his  bridle-hand,  and  in  the  other  holds  the  running  noose, 
which  is  made  very  large,  generally  having  a  diameter  of 
about  eight  feet.  This  he  whirls  round  his  head,  and  by 
the  dexterous  movement  of  his  wrist  keeps  the  noose  open ; 
then,  throwing  it,  he  causes  it  to  fall  on  any  particular  spot 


THE  GAUCHO.  121 


ARGENTINE   REPUBLIC. 


he  chooses.  The  lazo,  when  not  used,  is  tied  up  in  a  small 
coil  to  the  after  part  of  the  recado. 

The  bolas,  or  balls,  are  of  two  kinds.  The  simplest,  which 
are  chiefly  used  for  catching  ostriches,  consist  of  two  round 
stones,  covered  with  leather,  and  united  by  a  thin  plaited 
thong  about  eight  feet  long.  The  other  kind  differs  only  in 
having  three  balls  united  by  the  thong  to  a  common  centre. 
The  Gaucho  holds  the  smallest  of  the  three  in  his  hand,  and 
whirls  the  other  two  round  and  round  his  head ;  then,  tak- 
ing aim,  sends  them  like  chain-shot  whirling  through  the  air. 
The  balls  no  sooner  strike  any  object  than,  winding  round 
it,  they  cross  each  other,  and  become  firmly  hitched.  The 
size  and  weight  of  the  balls  vary,  according  to  the  purpose 
for  which  they  are  made :  when  of  stone,  although  not  larger 
than  an  English  apple,  they  are  sent  with  such  force  as  some- 
times to  break  the  legs  even  of  a  horse.  I  have  seen  the 
balls  made  of  wood,  and  as  large  as  a  turnip,  for  the  sake  of 
catching  these  animals  without  injuring  them.  The  balls  are 
sometimes  made  of  iron,  and  these  can  be  hurled  to  the  great- 
est distance. 

The  main  difficulty  in  using  either  lazo  or  bolas  is  to  ride 
so  well  as  to  be  able  at  full  speed,  and  while  suddenly  turn- 
ing about,  to  whirl  them  so  steadily  round  the  head  as  to 
take  aim:  on  foot,  any  person  would  soon  learn  the  art. 
One  day,  as  I  was  amusing  myself  by  galloping  and  whirl- 
ing the  balls  round  my  head,  by  accident  the  free  one  struck 
a  bush,  and  its  revolving  motion  being  thus  destroyed,  it  im- 
mediately fell  to  the  ground,  and  like  magic  caught  one  hind 
leg  of  my  horse ;  the  other  ball  was  then  jerked  out  of  my 


122 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


baud,  and  the  horse  fairly  secured.     Luckily  he  was  an  old 
practised   animal,  and   knew  what  it   meant,  otherwise   he 


USE   OF  LAZO   AND  SOLAS. 


would  probably  have  kicked  till  he  had  thrown  himself 
down.  The  Gauchos  roared  with  laughter;  they  cried  out 
that  they  had  seen  every  sort  of  animal  caught,  but  had  never 
before  seen  a  man  caught  by  himself. 

About  two  leagues  beyond  the  curious  tree  of  Walleechu 
we  halted  for  the  night.     At  this  instant  an  unfortunate  cow 


THE  GAUCHO.  123 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


was  spied  by  the  lynx-eyed  Gauchos,  who  set  off  in  full  chase, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  dragged  her  in  with  their  lazos  and 
slaughtered  her.  We  here  had  the  four  necessaries  of  life  in 
the  open  plain  (en  el  campo) — pasture  for  the  horses,  water 
(only  a  muddy  puddle),  meat,  and  firewood.  The  Gauchos 
were  in  high  spirits  at  finding  all  these  luxuries,  and  we  soon 
set  to  work  at  the  poor  cow.  This  was  the  first  night  which 
I  passed  under  the  open  sky,  with  the  saddle -gear  for  my 
bed.  There  is  high  enjoyment  in  the  independence  of  the 
Gaucho  life — to  be  able  at  any  moment  to  pull  up  your  horse 
and  say,  "Here  we  will  pass  the  night."  The  death -like 
stillness  of  the  plain,  the  dogs  keeping  watch,  the  gypsy  group 
of  Gauchos  making  their  beds  round  the  fire,  have  left  in  my 
mind  a  strongly-marked  picture  of  this  first  night,  which  will 
never  be  forgotten. 

At  Tapulquen  we  were  able  to  buy  some  biscuit.  I  had 
now  been  several  days  without  tasting  anything  beside  meat. 
I  did  not  at  all  dislike  this  new  diet,  but  I  felt  as  if  it  would 
only  have  agreed  with  me  with  hard  exercise.  I  have  heard 
that  patients  in  England,  to  whom  an  exclusively  animal 
diet  has  been  prescribed,  have  hardly  been  able  to  endure 
it,  even  to  save  their  lives;  yet  the  Gauchos  in  the  Pampas, 
for  months  together,  touch  nothing  but  beef.  But  they  eat, 
I  observe,  a  very  large  proportion  of  fat,  and  they  particularly 
dislike  dry  meat,  such  as  that  of  the  agouti.  It  is,  perhaps, 
on  account  of  their  meat  diet  that  the  Gauchos,  like  other 
flesh-eating  animals,  can  long  go  without  food.  I  was  told 
of  some  troops  who,  of  their  own  accord,  pursued  a  party  of 
Indians  for  three  days,  without  eating  or  drinking. 


124  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


ARGENTINE  CONFEDERATION. 


THE  AGOUTI. 


One  night  in  the  Falkland  Islands  we  slept  on  the  neck 
of  land  at  the  head  of  Choiseul  Sound,  which  forms  the  south- 
west peninsula.  The  valley 
was  pretty  well  sheltered  from 
the  cold  wind ;  but  there  was 
very  little  brushwood  for  fuel. 
The  Gauchos,  however,  soon 
found  what,  to  my  great  sur- 
prise, made  nearly  as  hot  a  fire  as  coals ;  this  was  the  skele- 
ton of  a  bullock  lately  killed,  from  which  the  flesh  had  been 
picked  by  the  carrion-hawks.  They  told  me  that  in  winter 
they  often  killed  a  beast,  cleaned  the  flesh  from  the  bones 
with  their  knives,  and  then  with  these  same  bones  roasted 
the  meat  for  their  supper. 

THE    LA    PLATAN. 

AT  Santa  Fe  I  was  confined  for  two  days  to  my  bed  by 
a  headache.  A  good-natured  old  woman,  who  attended  me, 
wished  me  to  try  many  odd  remedies.  A  common  practice 
is  to  bind  an  orange-leaf  or  a  bit  of  black  plaster  to  each  tem- 
ple; and  a  still  more  general  plan  is  to  split  a  bean  into 
halves,  moisten  them,  and  place  one  on  each  temple,  where 
they  will  easily  stick.  It  is  not  thought  proper  ever  to  re- 
move the  bean  or  plaster,  but  to  let  them  drop  off;  and 
sometimes,  if  a  man  with  patches  on  his  head  is  asked  what 
is  the  matter,  he  will  answer,  "I  had  a  headache  the  day  be- 
fore yesterday." 


THE   URUGUAYAN.  125 


URUGUAY. 


THE    URUGUAYAN. 

the  first  night  out  from  Maldonado  we  slept  at  a  re- 
tired little  country-house,  and  there  I  soon  found  out  that  I 
owned  two  or  three  articles,  especially  a  pocket  compass, 
which  created  unbounded  astonishment.  In  every  house  I 
was  asked  to  show  the  compass,  and  by  its  aid,  together  with 
a  map,  to  point  out  the  direction  of  various  places.  It  ex- 
cited the  liveliest  admiration  that  I,  a  perfect  stranger,  should 
know  the  road  (for  direction  and  road  mean  the  same  thing 
in  this  open  country)  to  places  where  I  had  never  been.  At 
one  house  a  young  woman,  who  was  ill  in  bed,  sent  to  beg 
me  to  come  and  show  her  the  compass.  If  their  surprise 
was  great,  mine  was  greater  to  find  such  ignorance  among 
people  owning  thousands  of  cattle,  and  estancias  of  great 
extent.  It  can  only  be  explained  by  the  circumstance  that 
this  retired  part  of  the  country  is  seldom  visited  by  foreign- 
ers. I  was  asked  whether  the  earth  or  sun  moved ;  whether 
it  was  hotter  or  colder  to  the  north ;  where  Spain  was,  and 
many  other  such  questions.  The  greater  number  of  the  in- 
habitants had  an  indistinct  idea  that  England,  London,  and 
North  America  were  different  names  for  the  same  place;  but 
the  better  informed  well  knew  that  London  and  North  Amer- 
ica were  separate  countries,  close  together,  and  that  England 
was  a  large  town  in  London !  I  carried  with  me  some  pro- 
methean matches,  which  I  lighted  by  biting ;  it  was  thought 
so  wonderful  that  a  man  should  strike  fire  with  his  teeth 
that  it  was  usual  to  collect  the  whole  family  to  see  it.  I  was 
once  offered  a  dollar  for  a  single  one !  Washing  my  face  in 


126  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

URUGUAY. 

the  morning  caused  much  speculation  at  the  village  of  Las 
Minas.  A  superior  tradesman  closely  cross -questioned  me 
about  so  singular  a  practice,  and  likewise  why,  on  board  ship, 
we  wore  our  beards  (for  he  had  heard  from  my  guide  that 
we  did  so).  He  eyed  me  with  much  suspicion.  It  is  the 
general  custom  in  this  country  to  ask  for  a  night's  lodging 
at  the  first  convenient  house.  The  astonishment  at  the  com- 
pass and  my  other  feats  in  jugglery  was  a  certain  advantage 
to  me,  as  with  that,  and  the  long  stories  my  guides  told  of 
my  breaking  stones,  knowing  venomous  from  harmless  snakes, 
collecting  insects,  etc.,  I  repaid  them  for  their  hospitality.  I 
am  writing  as  if  I  had  been  among  the  inhabitants  of  Cen- 
tral Africa.  Banda  Oriental  would  not  be  flattered  by  the 
comparison,  but  such  were  my  feelings  at  the  time. 

On  the  road  toward  Mercedes,  on  the  Rio  Negro,  we  asked 
leave  to  sleep  at  an  estancia  at  which  we  happened  to  arrive. 
It  was  a  very  large  estate,  being  ten  leagues  square ;  and 
the  owner  is  one  of  the  greatest  land-owners  in  the  country. 
His  nephew  had  charge  of  it,  and  with  him  there  was  a  cap- 
tain in  the  army,  who  the  other  day  ran  away  from  Buenos 
Ayres.  Considering  their  station,  their  conversation  was 
rather  amusing.  They  expressed,  as  was  usual,  unbounded 
astonishment  at  the  globe  being  round,  and  could  scarcely 
believe  that  a  hole  would,  if  deep  enough,  come  out  on  the 
other  side.  They  had,  however,  heard  of  a  country  where 
there  were  six  months  of  light  and  six  of  darkness,  and  where 
the  inhabitants  were  very  tall  and  thin !  They  were  curious 
about  the  price  and  condition  of  horses  and  cattle  in  England. 
Upon  finding  that  we  did  not  catch  our  animals  with  the 


THE   URUGUAYAN. 


127 


URUGUAY, 


lazo,  they  cried  out:  "Ah,  then,  you  use  nothing  but  the 
bolas !"  The  idea  of  an  enclosed  country  was  quite  new  to 
them.  The  captain  at  last  said  he  had  one  question  to  ask 
me,  which  he  should  be  very  much  obliged  if  I  would  answer 
with  all  truth :  it  was, "  Whether  the  ladies  of  Buenos  Ayres 
were  not  the  handsomest  in  the  world."  I  replied,  "  Charm- 


AN  ESTANCIERO  (PLANTER). 

ingly  so."  He  added,  "  I  have  one  other  question :  Do  ladies 
in  any  other  part  of  the  world  wear  such  large  combs  ?"  I 
solemnly  assured  him  that  they  did  not.  They  were  abso- 
lutely delighted.  The  captain  exclaimed,  "Look  there!  a 
man  who  has  seen  half  the  world  says  it  is  the  case ;  we  al- 
ways thought  so,  but  now  we  know  it."  My  excellent  judg- 
ment in  combs  and  beauty  procured  me  a  most  hospitable 


128  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


reception.  The  captain  forced  me  to  take  his  bed,  and 
would  sleep  on  his  recado. 

At  Mercedes  I  asked  two  men  w^hy  they  did  not  work. 
One  gravely  said  the  days  were  too  long;  the  other,  that  he 
was  too  poor.  The  number  of  horses  and  the  abundance  of 
food  are  the  destruction  of  all  industry.  Moreover,  there  are 
so  many  feast-days :  and  again,  nothing  can  succeed  unless  it 
be  begun  when  the  moon  is  on  the  increase ;  so  that  half  the 
month  is  lost  from  these  two  causes. 

Both  at  Colonia  and  in  other  places  I  noticed  a  very 
general  interest  in  the  approaching  election  for  President. 
The  inhabitants  do  not  require  much  education  in  their  rep- 
resentatives. I  heard  some  men  discussing  the  merits  of 
those  for  Colonia,  and  it  was  said  that, "  although  they  were 
not  men  of  business,  they  could  all  sign  their  names."  With 
this  they  seemed  to  think  every  reasonable  man  ought  to  be 
satisfied. 


THE    CHILENO. 

I  MUST  express  my  admiration  at  the  natural  politeness 
of  almost  every  Chileno.  I  may  mention  an  incident  with 
which  I  was  at  the  time  much  pleased :  We  met  near  Men- 
doza  a  little  and  very  fat  negress  riding  astride  on  a  mule. 
She  had  a  goitre  so  enormous  that  it  was  scarcely  possible 
to  avoid  gazing  at  her  for  a  moment;  but  my  two  compan- 
ions (Chilians)  almost  instantly,  by  way  of  apology,  made 
the  common  salute  of  the  country  by  taking  off  their  hats. 
Where  would  one  of  the  lower  or  higher  classes  in  Europe 


THE   CHILENO.  129 


CHILE. 


have  shown  such  feeling  politeness  to  a  poor  and  miserable 
object  of  a  degraded  race  ? 

My  geological  examination  of  the  country  generally 
caused  a  good  deal  of  surprise  among  the  Chilenos:  it  was 
long  before  they  could  be  convinced  that  I  was  not  hunting 
for  mines.  This  was  sometimes  troublesome.  I  found  the 
readiest  way  of  explaining  rny  employment  was  to  ask  them 
how  it  was  that  they  themselves  were  not  curious  concerning 
earthquakes  and  volcanoes?  —  why  some  springs  were  hot 
and  others  cold? — why  there  were  mountains  in  Chile  and 
not  a  hill  in  La  Plata?  These  bare  questions  at  once  satis- 
fied and  silenced  the  greater  number;  some,  however  (like  a 
few  in  England  who  are  a  century  behind),  thought  that  all 
such  inquiries  were  useless  and  impious,  and  that  it  was 
quite  sufficient  that  God  had  thus  made  the  mountains. 

The  Chilian  miners  are  a  peculiar  race  of  men  in  their 
habits.  Living  for  weeks  together  in  the  most  desolate  spots, 
when  they  descend  to  the  villages  on  feast-days  there  is  no 
excess  or  extravagance  into  which  they  do  not  run.  They 
sometimes  gain  a  considerable  sum,  and  then,  like  sailors  with 
prize-money,  they  try  how  soon  they  can  contrive  to  squander 
it.  They  drink  excessively,  buy  quantities  of  clothes,  and  in 
a  few  days  return  penniless  to  their  miserable  abodes,  there 
to  work  harder  than  beasts  of  burden.  This  thoughtlessness, 
as  with  sailors,  is  evidently  the  result  of  a  similar  mode  of 
life.  Their  daily  food  is  found  for  them,  and  they  acquire 
no  habits  of  carefulness ;  moreover,  temptation  and  the  means 
of  yielding  to  it  are  placed  in  their  power  at  the  same  time. 
On  the  other  hand,  in  Cornwall,  and  some  other  parts  of 

9 


130  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN   SAW. 


CHILE. 


England,  where  the  system  of  selling  part  of  the  vein  is  fol- 
lowed, the  miners  are  obliged  to  act  and  think  for  themselves, 
and  are  therefore  a  singularly  intelligent  and  well-behaved 
set  of  men. 

The  dress  of  the  Chilian  miner  is  peculiar  and  rather  pic- 
turesque. He  wears  a  very  long  shirt  of  some  dark-colored 
baize,  with  a  leathern  apron,  the  whole  being  fastened  round 
his  waist  by  a  bright -colored  sash.  His  trousers  are  very 
broad,  and  his  small  cap  of  scarlet  cloth  is  made  to  fit  the 
head  closely.  We  met  a  party  of  these  miners  in  full  cos- 
tume, carrying  the  body  of  one  of  their  companions  to  be 
buried.  They  marched  at  a  very  quick  trot,  four  men  sup- 
porting the  corpse.  One  set  having  run  as  hard  as  they 
could  for  about  two  hundred  yards,  were  relieved  by  four 
others,  who  had  previously  dashed  ahead  on  horseback. 
Thus  they  proceeded,  encouraging  each  other  by  wild  cries. 
Altogether  the  scene  formed  a  most  strange  funeral. 

Captain  Head  has  described  the  wonderful  load  which 
the  "apires" — truly  beasts  of  burden — carry  up  from  the 
deepest  mines.  I  confess  I  thought  the  account  exaggerated, 
so  that  I  was  glad  to  take  an  opportunity  of  weighing  one 
of  the  loads,  \vhich  I  picked  out  by  hazard.  It  required  con- 
siderable exertion  on  my  part,  when  standing  directly  over 
it,  to  lift  it  from  the  ground.  The  load  was  considered  un- 
der weight  when  found  to  be  one  hundred  and  ninety-seven 
pounds.  The  apire  had  carried  this  up  eighty  perpendicular 
yards — part  of  the  way  by  a  steep  passage,  but  the  greater 
part  up  notched  poles,  placed  in  a  zigzag  line  up  the  shaft. 
According  to  rule,  the  apire  is  not  allowed  to  halt  for  breath 


THE  CHILENO. 


131 


CHILE. 


unless  the  mine  is  six  hundred  feet  deep.  The  average  load 
is  considered  as  rather  more  than  two  hundred  pounds,  and 
I  have  been  assured  that  one 
of  three  hundred  pounds,  by 
way  of  a  trial,  had  been  brought 
up  from  the  deepest  mine.  At 
this  time  the  apires  were  bring- 
ing up  the  usual  load  twelve 
times  in  the  day — that  is,  twen- 
ty-four hundred  pounds  from 
eighty  yards  deep;  and  they 
were  employed  in  the  intervals 
in  breaking  and  picking  ore. 

These  men,  excepting  from 
accidents,  are  healthy,  and  ap- 
pear cheerful.  Their  bodies  are 
not  very  muscular.  They  rarely 
eat  meat  once  a  week,  and  nev- 
er oftener.  Although  knowing 
that  their  labor  wras  not  forced, 
it  was  nevertheless  quite  re- 
volting to  see  the  state  in  which  they  reached  the  mouth 
of  the  mine — their  bodies  bent  forward,  their  legs  bowed, 
their  muscles  quivering,  the  perspiration  streaming  from  their 
faces  over  their  breasts,  their  nostrils  distended,  the  corners  of 
their  mouths  forcibly  drawn  back,  and  the  expulsion  of  their 
breath  most  laborious.  After  staggering  to  the  pile  of  ore, 
they  emptied  the  carpaclio ;  in  two  or  three  seconds  recov- 
ering their  breath,  they  wiped  the  swreat  from  their  brows, 


TANATERO — OKE   CARRIER. 


132  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


and,  apparently  quite  fresh,  descended  the  mine  again  at  a 
quick  pace.  This  seems  to  me  a  wonderful  instance  of  the 
amount  of  labor  which  habit,  for  it  can  be  nothing  else,  will 
enable  a  man  to  endure. 


THE    SPANIARD. 

ONE  day,  while  we  were  at  the  gold-mines  of  Yaquil,  a 
German  collector  in  natural  history,  of  the  name  of  Renous, 
called,  and  nearly  at  the  same  time  an  old  Spanish  lawyer. 
I  was  amused  at  being  told  the  conversation  which  took  place 
between  them.  Renous  speaks  Spanish  so  well  that  the  old 
lawyer  mistook  him  for  a  Chilian.  Renous,  alluding  to  me, 
asked  him  what  he  thought  of  the  King  of  England  sending 
out  a  collector  to  their  country,  to  pick  up  lizards  and  beetles, 
and  to  break  stones.  The  old  gentleman  thought  seriously 
for  some  time,  and  then  said,  "It  is  not  well — hay  un  gato 
encerrado  aqui  (there  is  a  cat  shut  up  here).  No  man  is  so 
rich  as  to  send  out  people  to  pick  up  such  rubbish.  I  do 
not  like  it.  If  one  of  us  were  to  go  and  do  such  things  in 
England,  do  not  you  think  the  King  of  England  would  very 
soon  send  us  out  of  his  country  ?"  And  this  old  gentleman, 
from  his  profession,  belongs  to  the  better  informed  and  more 
intelligent  classes !  Renous  himself,  two  or  three  years  be- 
fore, left  in  a  house  at  San  Fernando  some  caterpillars,  under 
charge  of  a  girl  to  feed,  that  they  might  turn  into  butterflies. 
This  was  rumored  through  the  town,  and  at  last  the  priests 
and  the  governor  consulted  together,  and  agreed  it  must  be 
some  heresy.  So,  when  Renous  returned,  he  was  arrested. 


THE  TAHITI  AN.  135 


SOUTH    PACIFIC. 


The  captain  with  whom  we  descended  the  river  Parana 
was  an  old  Spaniard,  and  had  been  many  years  in  South 
America.  He  professed  a  great  liking  for  the  English,  but 
stoutly  maintained  that  the  battle  of  Trafalgar  was  merely 
won  by  the  Spanish  captains  having  been  all  bought  over, 
and  that  the  only  really  gallant  action  on  either  side  was 
performed  by  the  Spanish  admiral.  It  struck  me  as  rather 
characteristic  that  this  man  should  prefer  his  countrymen 
being  thought  the  worst  of  traitors,  rather  than  unskilful  or 
cowardly. 

THE    TAHITIAN. 

AT  Tahiti  I  was  pleased  with  nothing  so  much  as  with 
the  inhabitants.  There  is  a  mildness  in  the  expression  of 
their  countenances  which  at  once  banishes  the  idea  of  a  sav- 
age, and  an  intelligence  which  shows  that  they  are  advanc- 
ing in  civilization.  The  common  people,  when  working,  keep 
the  upper  part  of  their  bodies  quite  naked ;  and  it  is  then 
that  the  Tahitians  are  seen  to  advantage.  They  are  very 
tall,  broad-shouldered,  athletic,  and  well-proportioned.  It  has 
been  remarked  that  it  requires  little  habit  to  make  a  dark 
skin  more  pleasing  arid  natural  to  the  eye  of  a  European 
than  his  own  color.  A  white  man,  bathing  by  the  side  of 
a  Tahitian,  wTas  like  a  plant  bleached  by  the  gardener's  art 
compared  with  a  fine  dark  green  one,  growing  vigorously  in 
the  open  fields.  Most  of  the  men  are  tattooed,  and  the  orna- 
ments follow  the  curves  of  the  body  so  gracefully  that  they 
have  a  very  elegant  effect.  One  common  pattern,  varying  in 


136  WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 


SOUTH    PACIFIC. 


its  details,  is  somewhat  like  the  crown  of  a  palm-tree.  It 
springs  from  the  central  line  of  the  back,  and  gracefully  curls 
round  both  sides.  Many  of  the  elder  people  had  their  feet 
covered  with  small  figures,  so  placed  as  to  resemble  a  sock. 
This  fashion,  however,  is  partly  gone  by.  The  women  are 
tattooed  in  the  same  manner  as  the  men,  and  very  commonly 


NATIVE   BAMBOO   HOUSE,  TAHITI,  SOCIETY  ISLANDS. 

on  their  fingers.     They  are  far  inferior,  in  every  respect,  to 
the  men. 

On  a  short  excursion  into  the  mountains  our  line  of  march 
was  the  valley  of  Tia-auru,  down  which  a  river  flows  into 
the  sea  by  Point  Venus.  We  bivouacked  for  the  night  on 
a  flat  little  spot  on  the  bank  of  one  of  the  streams  into  which 
the  river  divided  itself  at  its  head.  The  Tahitians,  in  a  few 
minutes,  built  us  an  excellent  house,  and  then  proceeded  to 
make  a  fire  and  cook  our  evening  meal.  A  light  was  pro- 


THE  TAHITIAN. 


137 


SOUTH    PACIFIC. 


cured  by  rubbing  a  blunt- 
pointed  stick  in  a  groove 
made  in  another,  as  if  in 
order  to  deepen  it,  until  by 
the  friction  the  dust  was 
ignited.  A  peculiarly  white 
and  very  light  wood  is  alone 
used  for  this  purpose.  The 
fire  was  produced  in  a  few 
seconds;  but,  to  a  person 
who  does  not  understand 
the  art,  it  requires,  as  I 
found,  the  greatest  exertion ; 
but  at  last,  to  my  great  pride, 


FIKK   BY  FK1CT1ON. 


BANANA   LEAVES  AND  FRUIT-STALK. 


I  succeeded  in  igniting  the 
dust.  The  Gaucho  in 
the  Pampas  uses  a  dif- 
ferent method :  taking 
an  elastic  stick,  about 
eighteen  inches  long,  he 
presses  one  end  on  his 
breast,  and  the  other 
pointed  end  into  a  hole 
in  a  piece  of  wood,  and 
then  rapidly  turns  the 
curved  part,  like  a  car- 
penter's centre-bit.  The 
Tahitians,  having  made 
a  small  fire  of  sticks, 
placed  a  score  of  stones, 


138  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


AUSTRALIA. 


of  about  the  size  of  cricket-balls,  on  the  burning  wood.  In 
about  ten  minutes  the  sticks  were  consumed,  and  the  stones 

Lot.  They  had  previously  folded  up 
in  small  parcels  of  leaves  pieces  of 
beef,  fish,  ripe  and  unripe  bananas, 
and  the  tops  of  the  wild  arum.  These 
green  parcels  were  laid  in  a  layer  be- 
tween two  layers  of  the  hot  stones, 
and  the  whole  then  covered  up  with 

BANANA  BLOSSOM. 

earth,  so  that  no  smoke  or  steam  could 

escape.  In  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  the  whole  was  most 
deliciously  cooked.  The  choice  green  parcels  were  now  laid 
on  a  cloth  of  banana  leaves,  and  with  a  cocoa-nut  shell  we 
drank  the  cool  water  of  the  running  stream;  and  thus  we 
enjoyed  our  rustic  meal. 


THE    AUSTRALIAN    NEGRO. 

A  LARGE  tribe  of  natives,  called  the  White  Cockatoo  men, 
happened  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  settlement  at  King  George's 
Sound  while  we  were  there.  These  men,  as  well  as  those  of 
the  tribe  belonging  to  the  Sound,  being  tempted  by  the  offer 
of  some  tubs  of  rice  and  sugar,  were  persuaded  to  hold  a 
"corrobery,"  or  great  dancing -party.  As  soon  as  it  grew 
dark,  small  fires  were  lighted  and  the  men  commenced  their 
toilet,  which  consisted  in  painting  themselves  white  in  spots 
and  lines.  As  soon  as  all  was  ready,  large  fires  were  kept 
blazing,  round  which  the  women  and  children  were  collected 
as  spectators.  The  Cockatoo  and  King  George's  men  formed 


THE  AUSTRALIAN  NEGRO. 


139 


AUSTRALIA. 


AUSTRALIAN  NEGRO. 


two  distinct  parties,  and  generally  danced  in  answer  to  each 
other.  The  dancing  con- 
sisted in  their  running, 
either  sideways  or  in 
Indian  file,  into  an  open 
space,  and  stamping  the 
ground  with  great  force 
as  they  marched  togeth- 
er. Their  heavy  foot- 
steps were  accompanied 
by  a  kind  of  grunt,  by 
beating  their  clubs  and 
spears  together,  and  by 
various  other  gesticulations,  such  as  extending  their  arms  and 
wriggling  their  bodies.  It  was  a  most  rude,  barbarous  scene, 

and,  to  our  ideas,  with- 
out any  sort  of  mean- 
ing; but  we  observed 
that  the  black  women 
and  children  watched 
it  with  the  greatest 
pleasure.  Perhaps  these 
dances  originally  repre- 
sented actions,  such  as 
wars  and  victories. 
There  was  one  called 
the  Emu  dance,  in 
which  each  man  ex- 
KANGAROO.  tended  his  arm  in  a 


140  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


AUSTRALIA. 


bent  manner,  like  the  neck  of  that  bird.  In  another  dance, 
one  man  imitated  the  movements  of  a  kangaroo  grazing  in 
the  woods,  while  a  second  crawled  up  and  pretended  to  spear 
him.  When  both  tribes  mingled  in  the  dance  the  ground 
trembled  with  the  heaviness  of  their  steps,  and  the  air  re- 
sounded with  their  wild  cries.  Every  one  appeared  in  high 
spirits;  and  the  group  of  nearly  naked  figures,  viewed  by  the 
light  of  the  blazing  fires,  all  moving  in  hideous  harmony, 
formed  a  perfect  display  of  a  festival  among  the  lowest  bar- 
barians. In  Tierra  del  Fuego  we  had  beheld  many  curious 
scenes  in  savage  life,  but  never,  I  think,  one  where  the  na- 
tives were  in  such  high  spirits  and  so  perfectly  at  their  ease. 
After  the  dancing  was  over,  the  whole  party  formed  a  great 
circle  on  the  ground,  and  the  boiled  rice  and  sugar  was  dis- 
tributed, to  the  delight  of  all. 


AUSTRALIAN'   "  CORROBRRY." 


III. 

GEOGRAPHY 


URUGUAY. 


SOUTH   AMERICA. 


general  and  almost  entire  absence  of  trees  in  Banda 
Oriental  (or  Uruguay)  is  remarkable.  Some  of  the 
rocky  hills  are  partly  covered  by  thickets,  and  on  the  banks 
of  the  larger  streams, 
especially  to  the  north 
of  Las  Minas,  willow- 
trees  are  not  uncom- 
mon. Near  the  Arroyo 
Tapes  I  heard  of  a 
wood  of  palms;  and 
one  of  these  trees,  of 
considerable  size,  I  saw 
near  the  Pan  de  Azu- 
car  (Sugar-Loaf),  in  lat- 
itude thirty -five  de- 
grees. These,  and  the 
trees  planted  by  the 
Spaniards,  offer  the 
only  exceptions  to  the  general  scarcity  of  wood.  Among  the 
introduced  kinds  may  be  enumerated  poplars,  olives,  peach, 
and  other  fruit-trees:  the  peaches  succeed  so  well  that  they 


OLIVE  BRANCH. 


144 


WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 


LA   PLATA. 


afford  the  main  supply  of 
firewood  to  the  city  of  Bue- 
nos Ayres.  Extremely  lev- 
el countries,  such  as  the 
Pampas,  seldom  appear  fa- 
vorable to  the  growth  of 
trees. 


RIVER    PARANA. 

THE  Parana  is  full  of  isl- 
ands, which  undergo  a  con- 
stant round  of  decay  and 
renovation.  In  the  memory 
of  the  master  of  our  balandra 
(one -masted  vessel)  several 
large  ones  had  disappeared, 
and  others  again  had  been 
formed  and  protected  by 
vegetation.  They  are  com- 
posed of  muddy  sand,  with- 
out even  the  smallest  peb- 
ble, and  were  then  about 
four  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  river ;  but  during  the 
periodical  floods  they  are 
overflowed.  They  all  have 
one  character:  numerous 
willow  and  a  few  other  trees 


RIVER  PARANA.  145 


LA   PLATA. 


are  bound  together  by  a  great  variety  of  creeping  plants, 
thus  forming  a  thick  jungle.  These  thickets  afford  a  retreat 
for  capybaras  and  jaguars.  The  fear  of  the  latter  animal 
quite  destroyed  all  pleasure  in  scrambling  through  the  woods. 
On  every  island  there  were  tracks.  In  the  evening  the  mos- 
quitoes were  very  troublesome.  I  exposed  my  hand  for  five 
minutes,  and  it  was  soon  black  with  them ;  I  do  not  suppose 
that  there  could  have  been  less  than  fifty,  all  busy  sucking. 

Some  leagues  below  Rosario  the  western  shore  of  the 
Parana  is  bounded  by  perpendicular  cliffs,  which  extend  in 
a  long  line  to  below  San  Nicolas;  hence  it  more  resembles 
a  sea -coast  than  that  of  a  fresh -water  river.  It  is  a  great 
drawback  to  the  scenery  of  the  Parana  that,  from  the  soft 
nature  of  its  banks,  the  water  is  very  muddy.  The  Uru- 
guay, flowing  through  a  granitic  country,  is  much  clearer; 
and,  where  the  two  channels  unite  at  the  head  of  the  Plata, 
the  waters  may  for  a  long  distance  be  distinguished  by  their 
black  and  red  colors.  We  met  during  our  descent  very  few 
vessels.  One  of  the  best  gifts  of  nature,  in  so  grand  a  chan- 
nel of  communication,  seems  here  wilfully  thrown  away — a 
river  in  which  ships  might  navigate  from  a  temperate  coun- 
try as  surprisingly  abundant  in  certain  productions  as  des- 
titute of  others,  to  another  possessing  a  tropical  climate  and 
a  soil  which,  according  to  the  best  of  judges,  M.  Bonpland, 
is  perhaps  unequalled  in  fertility  in  any  part  of  the  world. 
How  different  would  have  been  the  aspect  of  this  river  if 
English  colonists  had  by  good -fortune  first  sailed  up  the 
Plata!  What  noble  towns  would  now  have  occupied  its 
shores ! 

10 


146 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


LA   PLATA. 


THE    PLATE    RIVER. 

HAVING  been  delayed  for  nearly  a  fortnight  in  Buenos 
Ay  res,  I  was  glad  to  escape  on  board  a  packet  bound  for 


THE    CITY    OF    MONTEVIDEO,   LOOKING    TOWARD    THE    1IAKBOK. 

Montevideo.  Our  passage  was  a  very  long  and  tedious  one. 
The  Plata  looks  like  a  noble  estuary  on  the  map,  but  is  in 
truth  a  poor  affair.  A  wide  expanse  of  muddy  water  has 
neither  grandeur  nor  beauty.  At  one  time  of  the  clay  the 
two  shores,  both  of  which  are  extremely  low,  could  just  be 
distinguished  from  the  deck. 


LA    PLATA. 

IN  the   evening   of  September  27,  1833,  I  set  out  from 
Buenos  Ayres  for  Sante  Fe,  situated  nearly  three  hundred 


LA   PLATA.  147 


SOUTH   AMERICA. 


English  miles  distant,  on  the  banks  of  the  Parana.  The  roads 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  city,  after  the  rainy  weather,  were 
extraordinarily  bad.  I  should  never  have  thought  it  possi- 
ble for  a  bullock  wagon  to  have  crawled  along;  as  it  was, 
they  scarcely  went  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  an  hour,  and  a  man 
was  kept  ahead  to  select  the  best  line  for  making  the  at- 
tempt. The  bullocks  were  terribly  jaded :  it  is  a  great  mis- 
take to  suppose  that,  with  improved  roads  and  a  quickened 
rate  of  travelling,  the  sufferings  of  the  animals  increase  in 
the  same  proportion.  We  passed  a  train  of  wagons  and  a 
troop  of  beasts  on  their  road  to  Mendoza.  The  distance  is 
about  five  hundred  and  eighty  geographical  miles,  and  the 
journey  is  generally  performed  in  fifty  days.  These  wagons 
are  very  long  and  narrow,  and  thatched  w^ith  reeds;  they 
have  only  two  wheels,  the  diameter  of  which  is  in  some  cases 
as  much  as  ten  feet.  Each  is  drawn  by  six  bullocks,  which 
are  urged  on  by  a  goad  at  least  twenty  feet  long;  this  is 
hung  from  within  the  roof:  for  the  wheel  bullocks  a  smaller 
one  is  kept;  and  for  the  middle  pair  a  point  projects  at 
right  angles  from  the  middle  of  the  long  one.  The  whole 
apparatus  looked  like  some  implement  of  war. 

At  San  Nicolas  I  first  saw  the  noble  river  of  the  Parana. 
At  the  foot  of  the  cliff  on  which  the  town  stands  some  large 
vessels  were  at  anchor.  Before  arriving  at  Rosario  we  crossed 
the  Saladillo,  a  stream  of  fine,  clear,  running  water,  but  too 
salty  to  drink.  Rosario  is  a  large  town  built  on  a  dead  level 
plain,  which  forms  a  cliff  about  sixty  feet  high  over  the  Pa- 
rana. The  river  here  is  very  broad,  with  many  islands,  which 
are  low  and  wooded,  as  is  also  the  opposite  shore.  The  view 


148 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


LA   PLATA. 


would  resemble  that  of  a  great  lake  if  it  were  not  for  the 
linear- shaped  islets,  which  alone  give  the  idea  of  running 
water.  The  cliffs  are  the  most  picturesque  part ;  sometimes 
they  are  absolutely  perpendicular,  and  of  a  red  color;  at 
other  times  in  large  broken  masses,  covered  with  cacti  and 
mimosa  trees. 

For  many  leagues  north  and  south  of  San  Nicolas  and 


OX-CART    OF    THE    PAMPAS. 


Rosario  the  country  is  really  level.  Scarcely  anything  which 
travellers  have  written  about  its  extreme  flatness  can  be  con- 
sidered as  exaggeration.  Yet  I  could  never  find  a  spot 
where,  by  slowly  turning  round,  objects  were  not  seen  at 
greater  distances  in  some  directions  than  in  others;  and  this 


THE  PAMPAS.  149 


URUGUAY. 


manifestly  proves  inequality  in  the  plain.  At  sea,  if  a  per- 
son's eye  is  six  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water,  his  hori- 
zon is  two  miles  and  four-fifths  distant.  In  like  manner,  the 
more  level  the  plain,  the  more  nearly  does  the  horizon  ap- 
proach within  these  narrow  limits ;  and  this,  in  my  opinion, 
entirely  destroys  that  grandeur  which  one  would  have  imag- 
ined that  a  vast  level  plain  would  have  possessed. 

THE    PAMPAS. 

THE  view  from  the  post  of  Ctifre,  in  Banda  Oriental,  was 
pleasing:  an  undulating  green  surface,  with  distant  glimpses 
of  the  Plata.  I  find  that  I  look  at  this  province  with  very 
different  eyes  from  what  I  did  upon  my  first  arrival.  I  recol- 
lect I  then  thought  it  singularly  level;  but  now  (November, 
1833),  after  galloping  over  the  Pampas,  my  only  surprise  is, 
what  could  have  induced  me  ever  to  have  called  it  level. 
The  country  is  a  series  of  undulations,  in  themselves,  perhaps, 
not  absolutely  great,  but,  as  compared  to  the  plains  of  Santa  Fe, 
real  mountains.  From  these  unevennesses  there  is  an  abun- 
dance of  small  rivulets,  and  the  turf  is  green  and  luxuriant. 

The  number  of  the  animal  remains  imbedded  in  the 
grand  estuary  deposit  which  forms  the  Pampas,  and  covers 
the  granitic  rocks  of  Banda  Oriental,  must  be  extraordinarily 
great.  I  believe  a  straight  line  drawn  in  any  direction 
through  the  Pampas  would  cut  through  some  skeleton  or 
bones.  Besides  those  which  I  found,  during  my  short  ex- 
cursions, I  heard  of  many  others,  and  the  origin  of  such  names 
as  "The  stream  of  the  animal,"  "The  hill  of  the  giant,"  is  ob- 


150  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


vious.  At  other  times  I  heard  of  the  marvellous  property 
of  certain  rivers,  which  had  the  power  of  changing  small 
bones  into  large;  or,  as  some  maintained,  the  bones  them- 
selves grew.  As  far  as  I  am  aware,  not  one  of  these  animals 
perished,  as  was  formerly  supposed,  in  the  marshes  or  river 
beds  of  the  present  land,  but  their  bones  have  been  exposed 
by  streams  cutting  through  the  watery  deposit  in  which  they 
were  originally  imbedded.  We  may  conclude  that  the  whole 
area  of  the  Pampas  is  one  wide  sepulchre  of  extinct  gigantic 
quadrupeds. 

In  calling  up  images  of  the  past,  I  find  that  the  plains  of 
Patagonia  frequently  cross  before  my  eyes;  yet  these  plains 
are  pronounced  by  everybody  wretched  and  useless.  With- 
out habitations,  without  water,  without  trees,  without  moun- 
tains, they  support  merely  a  few  dwarf  plants.  Why  then 
have  these  arid  wastes  taken  so  firm  a  hold  on  my  memory, 
and  not  on  mine  alone?  Why  have  not  the  still  more  level, 
the  greener  and  more  fertile  Pampas,  which  are  more  ser- 
viceable to  mankind,  produced  an  equal  impression  ?  I  can 
scarcely  analyze  these  feelings,  but  it  must  be  partly  owing 
to  the  free  scope  given  to  the  imagination.  The  plains  of 
Patagonia  are  boundless,  for  they  are  scarcely  passable,  and 
hence  unknown ;  they  bear  the  stamp  of  having  lasted,  as 
they  are  now,  for  ages,  and  there  appears  no  limit  to  their 
duration  through  future  time.  If,  as  the  ancients  supposed, 
the  fiat  earth  was  surrounded  by  an  impassable  breadth  of 
water,  or  by  deserts  heated  to  an  unbearable  excess,  who 
would  not  look  at  these  lost  boundaries  to  man's  knowledge 
with  deep  but  vague  sensations  ? 


T I  ERR  A   DEL   FUEGO.  151 

SOUTH   AMERICA.  ~ 

TIERRA    DEL    FUEGO. 

TIERRA  DEL  FUEGO  may  be  described  as  a  mountainous 
land,  partly  sunk  in  the  sea,  so  that  deep  inlets  and  bays 
occupy  the  place  where  valleys  should  exist.  The  mountain 
sides,  except  on  the  exposed  western  coast,  are  covered  from 
the  water's  edge  upward  by  one  great  forest.  The  trees 
reach  to  an  elevation  of  between  one  thousand  and  fifteen 
hundred  feet,  and  are  succeeded  by  a  band  of  peat  with  tiny 
alpine  plants ;  and  this  again  is  succeeded  by  the  line  of  per- 
petual snow.  To  find  an  acre  of  level  land  in  any  part  of 
the  country  is  most  rare.  I  recollect  only  one  little  flat  piece 
near  Port  Famine,  and  another  of  rather  larger  extent  near 
Goeree  Road.  In  both  places,  and  everywhere  else,  the  sur- 
face is  covered  by  a  thick  bed  of  swampy  peat.  Even  within 
the  forest  the  ground  is  hidden  by  a  mass  of  slowly  rotting 
vegetable  matter,  which,  from  being  soaked  with  water,  yields 
to  the  foot.  The  trees  all  belong  to  one  kind,  the  Fagus 
betuloidcs.  This  beech  keeps  its  leaves  throughout  the  year, 
but  its  foliage  is  of  a  peculiar  brownish  green  color,  with  a 
tinge  of  yellow.  As  the  whole  landscape  is  thus  colored,  it 
has  a  sombre,  dull  appearance ;  nor  is  it  often  enlivened  by 
the  rays  of  the  sun. 

On  the  morning  of  the  28th  of  January,  1833,  Captain 
Fitz  Roy  determined  to  proceed  with  two  boats  to  survey 
the  western  parts  of  Beagle  Channel.  The  day,  to  our  as- 
tonishment, was  overpoweringly  hot,  so  that  our  skins  were 
scorched.  With  this  beautiful  weather  the  view  in  the  mid- 
die  of  the  channel  was  very  remarkable.  Looking  toward 


152 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


TIERRA    DEL   FUEGO. 


either  hand,  no  object  interrupted  the  perspective  of  this  long 
canal  between  the  mountains.  We  sailed  on  till  it  was  dark, 
and  then  pitched  our  tents  in  a  quiet  creek  on  a  beach  of 
pebbles,  where,  in  our  blanket-bags,  we  passed  a  most  com- 
fortable night.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  next  day  we 


MOUNTAINS  AND   GLACIERS   IX  MAGELLAN   STRAITS. 

reached  the  point  where  the  Beagle  Channel  divides  into 
two  arms,  and  we  entered  the  northern  one.  The  scenery 
here  becomes  even  grander  than  before.  The  lofty  moun- 
tains on  the  north  side,  forming  the  granite  axis  or  backbone 
of  the  country,  boldly  rise  to  a  height  of  between  three  and 
four  thousand  feet,  with  one  peak  above  six  thousand  feet. 
They  are  covered  by  a  wide  mantle  of  perpetual  snow,  and 
numerous  cascades  pour  their  waters  through  the  woods  into 
the  narrow  channel  below.  In  many  parts  magnificent  gla- 
ciers extend  from  the  mountain  side  to  the  water's  edge.  It 


CHILOE.  153 


CHILE. 


is  scarcely  possible  to  imagine  anything  more  beautiful  than 
the  beryl -like  blue  of  these  glaciers,  especially  in  contrast 
with  the  dead  white  of  the  upper  expanse  of  snow.  The 
fragments  which  had  fallen  from  the  glacier  into  the  water 
were  floating  away,  and  the  channel  with  its  icebergs  pre- 
sented, for  the  space  of  a  mile,  a  miniature  likeness  of  the 
Polar  Sea. 

The  boats  being  hauled  on  shore  at  our  dinner-hour,  we 
were  admiring  from  the  distance  of  half  a  mile  a  perpendicu- 
lar cliff  of  ice,  and  were  wishing  that  some  more  fragments 
would  fall.  At  last  down  came  a  mass  with  a  roaring  noise, 
and  immediately  we  saw  the  smooth  outline  of  a  wave  trav- 
elling toward  us.  The  men  ran  down  as  quickly  as  they 
could  to  the  boats,  for  the  chance  of  their  being  dashed  to 
pieces  was  evident.  One  of  the  seamen  just  caught  hold  of 
the  bows  as  the  curling  breaker  reached  it:  he  was  knocked 
over  and  over,  but  not  hurt,  and  the  boats,  though  thrice 
lifted  on  high  and  let  fall  again,  received  no  damage.  This 
was  most  fortunate  for  us,  for  we  were  a  hundred  miles  dis- 
tant from  the  ship,  and  we  should  have  been  left  without 
provisions  or  fire-arms. 

CHILOE. 

EARLY  on  Sunday  morning,  November  30, 1834,  we  reach- 
ed Castro,  the  ancient  capital  of  Chiloe,  but  now  a  most  for- 
lorn and  deserted  place.  The  usual  quadrangular  arrange- 
ment of  Spanish  towns  could  be  traced,  but  the  streets  and 
plaza  (public  square)  were  coated  with  fine  green  tuif,  on 


154 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


which  sheep  were  browsing.  The  church,  which  stands  in 
the  middle,  is  entirely  built  of  plank,  and  has  a  picturesque 
and  venerable  appearance.  The  poverty  of  the  place  may  be 
imagined  from  the  fact  that,  although  containing  some  hun- 
dreds of  inhabitants,  one  of  our  party  was  unable  anywhere 
to  purchase  either  a  pound  of  sugar  or  an  ordinary  knife. 
No  person  possessed  either  a  watch  or  a  clock;  and  an  old 
man,  who  was  supposed  to  have  a  good  idea  of  time,  was 
employed  to  strike  the  church  bell  by  guess.  The  arrival  of 
our  boats  was  a  rare  event  in  this  quiet,  retired  corner  of  the 
world ;  and  nearly  all  the  inhabitants  came  down  to  the 
beach  to  see  us  pitch  our  tents. 


VALPARAISO. 

THE  Beagle  anchored  late  at  night  (July  23, 1834)  in  the 
bay  of  Valparaiso,  the  chief  seaport  of  Chile.     When  morn- 


- 


CUSTOMS   GUARD-HOUSE,  VALPARAISO,  CHILE. 


VALPARAISO. 


155 


CHILE. 


ALLKORANZA0 
CLARA  •„ 


/     x~ 

vQ  Lobos 


PALMA 


.Crux 


TENERIFFE 


*  TJERTKVKNTURAy5f| 


Candelar  a 


GKAJT  CAJI A 


HlERRO 


CANARY   ISLANDS 


17         Longitude  West  16  from  Greenwich        15 


ing  came,  everything  appeared  delightful.  After  Tierra  del 
Fuego  the  climate  felt  quite  delicious — the  atmosphere  so 
dry,  and  the  heavens  so  clear  and  blue,  with  the  sun  shining 
brightly,  that  all  nature  seemed  sparkling  with  life.  The 
view  from  the  anchorage  is  very  pretty.  The  town  is  built 


PLAZA  DE  LA  CONSTITUCION,  SANTA   CRUZ. 


at  the  foot  of  a  range  of  hills,  about  sixteen  hundred  feet 
high,  and  rather  steep.     From  its  position  it  consists  of  one 


156 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


long  straggling  street,  which  runs  parallel  to  the  beach,  and 
wherever  a  ravine  comes  down  the  houses  are  piled  up  on 
each  side  of  it.  The  rounded  hills,  being  only  partially  pro- 
tected by  a  very  scanty  vegetation,  are  worn  into  numberless 
little  gullies,  which  expose  a  singularly  bright  red  soil.  From 
this  cause,  and  from  the  low  whitewashed  houses  with  tile 


PEAK   OF   TENE1UFFE. 


roofs,  the  view  reminded  me  of  Santa  Cruz  in  Teneriffe.  In 
a  north-easterly  direction  there  are  some  fine  glimpses  of 
the  Andes,  but  these  mountains  appear  much  grander  when 
viewed  from  the  neighboring  hills:  the  great  distance  at 
which  they  are  situated  can  then  more  readily  be  perceived. 
The  volcano  of  Aconcagua  is  particularly  magnificent;  its 
height  is  no  less  than  twenty-three  thousand  feet 


QUILL  OTA. 


157 


CHILE. 


QTJILLOTA. 

WHOEVER  called  Valparaiso  the  "  Valley  of  Paradise n 
must  have  been  thinking  of  Quillota.  Any  one  who  had 
seen  only  the  country  near  Valparaiso  would  never  have  im- 
agined that  there  had  been  such  picturesque  spots  in  Chile. 


ORANGE-GROVES. 


As  soon  as  we  reached  the  brow  of  the  sierra  the  valley  of 
Quillota  was  immediately  under  our  feet:  very  broad  and 
quite  flat,  and  easily  irrigated  in  all  parts.  The  little  square 
gardens  are  crowded  with  orange  and  olive  trees,  and  every 
sort  of  vegetable.  On  each  side  huge  bare  mountains  rise,  and 
the  contrast  renders  the  patchwork  valley  the  more  pleasing. 


158  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


VALDIVIA. 

VALDIVIA  is  situated  about  ten  miles  from  the  coast,  on 
the  low  banks  of  a  stream,  and  is  so  completely  buried  in  a 
wood  of  apple-trees  that  the  streets  are  merely  paths  in  an 
orchard.  I  have  never  seen  any  country  where  apple-trees 
appeared  to  thrive  so  well  as  in  this  damp  part  of  South 
America :  on  the  borders  of  the  roads  there  were  many  young 
trees,  evidently  self-sown.  In  the  island  of  Chiloe  the  in- 
habitants have  a  marvellously  short  method  of  making  an 
orchard.  At  the  lower  part  of  almost  every  branch  small 
conical  brown  wrinkled  points  project ;  these  are  always 
ready  to  change  into  roots,  as  may  sometimes  be  seen  where 
any  mud  has  been  accidentally  splashed  against  the  tree.  A 
branch  as  thick  as  a  man's  thigh  is  chosen  in  the  early  spring, 
and  is  cut  off  just  beneath  a  group  of  these  points ;  all  the 
smaller  branches  are  lopped  off,  and  it  is  then  placed  about 
two  feet  deep  in  the  ground.  During  the  next  summer  the 
stump  throws  out  long  shoots,  and  sometimes  even  bears 
fruit.  I  was  shown  one  which  had  produced  as  *  many  as 
twenty-three  apples,  but  this  was  thought  very  unusual.  In 
the  third  season  the  stump  is  changed  (as  I  have  myself  seen) 
into  a  well-wooded  tree,  loaded  with  fruit.  An  old  man  near 
Valdivia  gave  us  an  account  of  the  several  useful  things  he 
manufactured  from  his  apples.  After  making  cider,  and  like- 
wise wine,  he  extracted  from  the  leavings  a  white  and  finely- 
flavored  spirit ;  by  another  process  he  procured  a  sweet  trea- 
cle, or,  as  he  called  it,  honey.  His  children  and  pigs  seemed 
almost  to  live,  during  this  season  of  the  year,  in  his  orchard. 


CHILE.— LIMA.  159 


CHILE   AND   PERU. 


CHILE. 

CHILE,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  maps,  is  a  narrow  strip  of 
land  between  the  Cordillera  and  the  Pacific ;  and  this  strip  is 
itself  traversed  by  several  mountain -lines,  which,  near  Quil- 
lota,  run  parallel  to  the  great  range.  Between  these  outer 
lines  and  the  main  Cordillera  a  succession  of  level  basins, 
generally  opening  into  each  other  by  narrow  passages,  extend 
far  to  the  southward :  in  these  the  principal  towns  are  situ- 
ated, as  San  Felipe,  Santiago,  San  Fernando.  These  basins 
or  plains,  together  with  the  flat  cross -valleys  (like  that  of 
Quillota)  which  connect  them  with  the  coast,  I  have  no  doubt 
are  the  bottoms  of  ancient  inlets  and  deep  bays,  such  as  at 
the  present  day  intersect  every  part  of  Tierra  del  Fuego  and 
the  western  coast.  The  resemblance  of  Chile  to  the  latter 
country  was  occasionally  shown  strikingly  when  a  level  fog- 
bank  covered,  as  with  a  mantle,  all  the  lower  parts  of  the 
country ;  the  white  vapor  curling  into  the  ravines  beautifully 
represented  little  coves  and  bays,  and  here  and  there  a  soli- 
tary hillock  peeping  up,  showed  that  it  had  formerly  stood 
there  as  an  islet. 


LIMA. 

LIMA  stands  on  a  plain  in  a  valley  formed  during  the 
gradual  retreat  of  the  sea.  It  is  seven  miles  from  Callao, 
and  five  hundred  feet  higher;  but,  from  the  slope  being 
very  gradual,  the  road  appears  absolutely  level,  so  that  when 
at  Lima  it  is  difficult  to  believe  one  has  ascended  even  one 


162 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PERU. 


hundred  feet.  Steep  barren  hills  rise  like  islands  from  the 
plain,  which  is  divided  by  straight  mud-walls  into  large  green 
fields.  In  these  scarcely  a  tree  grows  excepting  a  few  wil- 
lows, and  an  occasional  clump  of  bananas  and  oranges.  Lima, 


the  "  City  of  the  Kings,"  must  formerly  have  been  a  splen- 
did town.  The  extraordinary  number  of  churches  gives  it, 
even  at  the  present  day,  a  peculiar  and  striking  character, 
especially  when  viewed  from  a  short  distance. 


TAHITI. 


163 


SOUTH    PACIFIC. 


One  day  I  went  out  with  some  merchants  to  hunt  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  city.  Our  sport  was  very  poor, 
but  I  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  the  ruins  of  one  of  the 
ancient  Indian  villages,  with  its  mound,  like  a  natural  hill, 
in  the  centre.  The  remains  of  houses,  enclosures,  irrigating 
streams,  and  burial-mounds,  scattered  over  this  plain,  cannot 
fail  to  give  one  a  high  idea  of  the  condition  and  number  of 
the  ancient  population.  When  their  earthenware,  woollen 
clothes,  utensils  of  elegant  forms  (cut  out  of  the  hardest 
rocks),  tools  of  copper,  ornaments  of  precious  stones,  palaces, 
and  water -works  are  considered,  it  is  impossible  not  to  re- 
spect the  considerable  advance  made  by  them  in  the  arts  of 
civilization. 

TAHITI. 

A  CORAL  reef  encircles  the  entire  line  of  coast  of  Tahiti. 
Within  the  reef  there  is  an  expanse  of  smooth  water,  like 
that  of  a  lake,  where  the  canoes  of 
the  natives  can  ply  with  safety,  and 
where  ships  anchor.  The  lowland, 
which  comes  down  to  the  beach  of 
coral -sand,  is  covered  with  the  most 
beautiful  productions  of  the  intertrop- 
ical  regions.  In  the  midst  of  bana- 
nas, orange,  cocoa-nut,  and  bread-fruit- 
trees,  spots  are  cleared  where  yams, 
sweet  potatoes,  the  sugar-cane  and  pine- 
apple are  cultivated.  Even  the  brush- 

-,      .  .  FRUIT  OF  THE  BREAD-FRUIT- 

wood  is  an  imported  fruit-tree,  namely,  TREE. 


164 


WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 


AUSTRALIA. 


OF    PALMS    IN  THR   BOTANIC 
GARDENS   AT  RIO. 


the  guava,  which  from  its 
abundance  has  become  as 
noxious  as  a  weed.  In 
Brazil  I  have  often  admired 
the  varied  beauty  of  the 
bananas,  palms,  and  orange- 
trees  contrasted  together ; 
and  here  we  also  have  the 
bread-fruit,  conspicuous  from 
its  large,  glossy,  and  deeply 
digitated  leaf.  The  little 
winding  paths,  cool  from 
the  surrounding  shade,  led 
to  the  scattered  houses,  the 
owners  of  which  everywhere 
gave  us  a  cheerful  and  most 
hospitable  reception.  In  the 
case  of  these  beautiful  woods, 
the  knowledge  of  their  high 
productiveness  no  doubt  en- 
ters largely  into  the  feeling 
of  admiration. 


NEW   SOUTH  WALES. 

ITS  extreme  uniformity  is  the  most  remarkable  feature 
in  the  landscape  of  the  greater  part  of  New  South  Wales. 
Everywhere  we  have  an  open  woodland,  the  ground  being 
partially  covered  with  a  very  thin  pasture,  with  little  ap- 


NEW  SOUTH   WALES. 


165 


AUSTRALIA. 


pearance  of  verdure.  The  trees  nearly  all  belong  to  one 
family,  and  mostly  have  their  leaves  placed  in  an  upright 
instead  of,  as  in  Europe,  in  a  nearly  horizontal  position : 
the  foliage  is  scanty,  and  of  a  peculiar  pale  green  tint,  with- 
out any  gloss;  hence  the  woods  appear  light  and  shadow- 
less.  This,  although  a  loss  of  comfort  to  the  traveller  under 
the  scorching  rays  of  summer,  is  of  importance  to  the  farmer, 
as  it  allows  grass  to  grow  where  it  otherwise  would  not. 
The  leaves  are  not  shed  periodically ;  and  this  appears  to  be 


,."//.  * 

TAHITI  AN   COAST   SCENERY. 


the  case  in  the  entire  southern  hemisphere,  namely,  South 
America,  Australia,  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  The  in- 
habitants of  this  hemisphere  and  of  the  intertropical  regions 


166 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


AUSTRALIA. 


thus  lose,  perhaps,  one  of  the  most  glorious  (though  to  our 
eyes  common)  spectacles  in  the  world — the  first  bursting  into 
full  foliage  of  the  leafless  tree.  They  may,  however,  say  that 


CAPE  TOWN,  CAPE  OF  GOOD  HOPE. 

we  pay  clearly  for  this  by  having  the  land  covered  with  mere 
naked  skeletons  for  so  many  months.  This  is  too  true;  but 
our  senses  thus  gain  a  keen  relish  for  the  exquisite  green  of 
the  spring,  which  the  eyes  of  those  living  within  the  tropics, 
sated  during  the  long  year  with  the  gorgeous  productions  of 
those  glowing  climates,  can  never  experience.  The  greater 
number  of  the  trees,  with  the  exception  of  some  of  the  blue- 
gums,  do  not  attain  a  large  size;  but  they  grow  tall  and 
tolerably  straight,  and  stand  well  apart.  The  bark  of  some 
of  the  Eucalypti  falls  annually,  or  hangs  dead  in  long  shreds, 
which  swing  about  in  the  wind,  and  give  to  the  woods  a  deso- 


NEW  SOUTH    WALES. 


167 


AUSTRALIA. 


late  and  untidy  appearance.  I  cannot  imagine  a  more  com- 
plete contrast,  in  every  respect,  than  between  the  forests  of 
Valdivia  or  Chiloe  and  the  woods  of  Australia. 

West  of  the  Blue  Mountains  the  woodland  is  generally 
so  open  that  a  person  on  horseback  can  gallop  through  it. 


EUCALYPTUS-TREE  (BLUE-GUM). 

It  is  traversed  by  a  few  flat-bottomed  valleys,  which  are 
green  and  free  from  trees:  in  such  spots  the  scenery  was 
pretty  like  that  of  a  park.  In  the  whole  country  I  scarcely 


168  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


AUSTRALIA. 


saw  a  place  without  the  marks  of  a  fire;  whether  these  had 
been  more  or  less  recent — whether  the  stumps  were  more  or 
less  black — was  the  greatest  change  which  varied  the  uni- 
formity, so  wearisome  to  the  traveller's  eye.  In  these  woods 
there  are  not  many  birds.  I  saw,  however,  some  large  flocks 
of  the  white  cockatoo  feeding  in  a  cornfield,  and  a  few  of  the 
most  beautiful  parrots;  crows  like  our  English  jackdaws  were 
not  uncommon,  and  another  bird  something  like  the  magpie. 


IV. 

NATURE. 


FORESTS. 


SOUTH    AMERICA. 


A  MONG  the  scenes  which  are  deeply  impressed  on  ray 
•"*  mind,  none  exceed  in  sublimity  the  primeval  forests, 
undefaced  by  the  hand  of  man — whether  those  of  Brazil, 
where  the  powers  of  Life  are  predominant,  or  those  of  Tierra 
del  Fuego,  where  Death  and  Decay  prevail.  Both  are  tem- 
ples filled  with  the  varied  productions  of  the  God  of  Nature. 
No  one  can  stand  in  these  solitudes  unmoved,  and  not  feel 
that  there  is  more  in  man  than  the  mere  breath  of  his  body. 

In  tropical  forests,  when  quietly  walking  along  the  shady 
pathways,  and  admiring  each  successive  view,  I  wished  to 
find  language  to  express  my  ideas.  Epithet  after  epithet 
was  found  too  weak  to  convey  to  those  who  have  not  vis- 
ited the  intertropical  regions  the  sensation  of  delight  which 
the  mind  experiences.  The  land  is  one  great,  wild,  untidy, 
luxuriant  hot -house,  made  by  Nature  for  herself,  but  taken 
possession  of  by  man,  who  has  studded  it  with  gay  houses 
and  formal  gardens.  How  great  would  be  the  desire  in  every 
admirer  of  nature  to  behold,  if  such  were  possible,  the  scenery 
of  another  planet !  Yet  to  every  person  in  Europe  it  may  be 
truly  said  that,  at  the  distance  of  only  a  few  degrees  from 
his  native  soil,  the  glories  of  another  world  are  opened  to 


THE  KAURI  PINE. 


171 


NEW   ZEALAND. 


him.     In  my  last  walk  I  stopped  again   and  again  to  gaze 
on  these  beauties,  and  endeavored  to  fix  in  my  mind  forever 
an  impression  which,  at  the  time,  I  knew 
must  sooner  or  later  fail.     The  form  of  the 
orange -tree,  the   cocoa-nut,  the   palm,  the 
mango,  the   tree-fern,  the    banana,  will   re- 
main clear  and  separate;  but  the  thousand 
beauties  which  unite  these  into  one  perfect 
scene  must  fade  away. 

THE   KAURI   PINE. 

AT  Waimate,  in  New  Zealand,  two  mis- 
sionary gentlemen  walked  with  me  to  part 
of  a  neighboring  forest,  to  show  me  the 
famous  kauri  pine.  I  measured  one  of  these 
noble  trees  and  found  it  thirty -one  feet 
in  circumference  above  the  roots.  There 
was  another  close  by,  which  I  did  not  see,  thirty-three  feet ; 
and  I  heard  of  one  no  less  than  forty  feet.  These  trees  are 
remarkable  for  their  smooth  cylindrical  boles,  which  run  up 
to  a  height  of  sixty,  and  even  ninety,  feet,  with  a  nearly 
equal  diameter,  and  without  a  single  branch.  The  crown 
of  branches  at  the  top  is  out  of  all  proportion  small  to  the 
trunk ;  and  the  leaves  are  likewise  small  compared  with 
the  branches.  The  forest  was  here  almost  composed  of  the 
kauri,  and  the  largest  trees  stood  up  like  gigantic  columns 
of  wood. 


MANGO   FRUIT. 


172  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

~  TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 

THE   BEECH. 

THE  central  part  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  where  the  clay-slate 
formation  occurs,  is  most  favorable  to  the  growth  of  trees ;  on 
the  outer  coast  the  poorer  granitic  soil,  and  a  situation  more 
exposed  to  the  violent  wTinds,  do  not  allow  of  their  attaining 
any  great  size.  Near  Port  Famine  I  have  seen  more  large 
trees  than  anywhere  else:  I  measured  a  winterVbark  which 
was  four  feet  six  inches  in  girth,  and  several  of  the  beech 
were  as  much  as  thirteen  feet.  Captain  King  also  mentions 
a  beech  which  was  seven  feet  in  diameter  seventeen  feet 
above  the  roots. 


THE   KELP. 

THEEE  is  one  marine  production  which,  from  its  impor- 
tance, is  worthy  of  a  particular  history;  it  is  the  kelp  (or 
Macrocystis  pyrifera).  This  plant  grows  on  every  rock,  from 
lowr-water  mark  to  a  great  depth,  both  on  the  outer  coast  of 
Tierra  del  Fuego  and  within  the  channels.  I  believe,  during 
the  voyages  of  the  Adventure  and  Beagle,  not  one  rock  near 
the  surface  was  discovered  which  was  not  buoyed  by  this 
floating  weed.  The  good  service  it  thus  affords  to  vessels 
navigating  near  this  stormy  land  is  evident ;  and  it  certainly 
has  saved  many  a  one  from  being  wrecked.  I  know  few  things 
more  surprising  than  to  see  this  plant  growing  and  flourish- 
ing amidst  those  great  breakers  of  the  western  ocean,  which 
no  mass  of  rock,  let  it  be  ever  so  hard,  can  long  resist.  The 
stem  is  round,  slimy,  and  smooth,  and  seldom  has  a  diameter 


THE  KELP. 


173 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


of  so  much  as  an  inch.     A  few  taken  together  are  sufficiently 
strong  to  support  the  weight  of  the  large  loose  stones  to 


CHRISTMAS   HARBOR,  KKRGUKLEX  LAND. 


which,  ill  the  inland  channels,  they  grow  attached ;  and  yet 
some  of  these  stones  were  so  heavy  that,  when  drawn  to  the 
surface,  they  could  scarcely  be  lifted  into  a  boat  by  one.  per- 


174  WHAT  MR.   DARWIN   SAW. 


INDIAN   OCEAN. 


son.  Captain  Cook,  in  his  second  voyage,  says  that  this  plant, 
at  Kerguelen  Land,  rises  from  a  greater  depth  than  twenty- 
four  fathoms;  "and  as  it  does  not  grow  in  a  perpendicular 
direction,  but  makes  a  very  acute  angle  with  the  bottom,  and 
much  of  it  afterward  spreads  many  fathoms  on  the  surface  of 
the  sea,  I  am  well  warranted  to  say  that  some  of  it  grows 
to  the  length  of  sixty  fathoms  and  upward."  I  do  not  sup- 
pose the  stem  of  any  other  plant  attains  so  great  a  length  as 
three  hundred  and  sixty  feet,  as  stated  by  Captain  Cook. 
Captain  Fitz  Roy,  moreover,  found  it  growing  up  from  the 
greater  depth  of  forty-five  fathoms.  The  beds  of  this  sea- 
weed, even  when  not  of  sreat  breadth,  make  excellent  natu- 

/  O  ' 

ral  floating  breakwaters.  It  is  quite  curious  to  see,  in  an  ex- 
posed harbor,  how  soon  the  waves  from  the  open  sea,  as  they 
travel  through  the  straggling  stemsr  sink  in  height  and  pass 
into  smooth  water. 

The  number  of  living  creatures  whose  ^existence  intimate- 
ly depends  on  the  kelp  is  wonderful.  A  great  volume  might 
be  written  describing  the  inhabitants  of  one  of  these  beds 
of  sea- weed.  Almost  all  the  leaves,  excepting  those  that 
float  on  the  surface,  are  so  thickly  incrusted  with  corallines 
as  to  be  of  a  white  color.  On  shaking  the  great  entangled 
roots,  a  pile  of  small  fish,  shells,  cuttle-fish,  crabs,  sea -eggs, 
star-fish,  etc.,  all  fall  out  together.  Often  as  I  went  back  to 
a  branch  of  the  kelp,  I  never  failed  to  discover  animals  of 
new  and  curious  structures.  I  can  only  compare  these  great 
water  forests  of  the  southern  hemisphere  with  the  land  for- 
ests in  the  intertropical  regions.  Yet,  if  in  any  country  a 
forest  was  destroyed,  I  do  not  believe  nearly  so  many  species 


MOUNTAINS. 


175 


TIERRA   DEL  FUEGO. 


of  animals  would  perish  as  would  here  from  the  destruction 
of  the  kelp.  Amidst 
the  leaves  of  this 
plant  numerous  spe- 
cies of  fish  live 
which  nowhere  else 
could  find  food  or 
shelter ;  with  their 
destruction  the 
many  cormorants 
and  other  fishing 
birds,  the  otters, 
seals  and  porpoises 
would  soon  perish 
also;  and  lastly,  the 
Fuegian  savage,  the  miserable  lord  of  this  miserable  land, 
would  redouble  his  cannibal  feast,  decrease  in  numbers,  and 
perhaps  cease  to  exist. 


8TAK-F1S1I. 


MOUNTAINS. 

I  WAS  frequently  surprised,  in  the  scenery  of  Tierra  del 
Fuego,  at  the  little  apparent  elevation  of  mountains  really 
lofty.  I  suspect  it  is  owing  to  a  cause  which  would  not  at 
first  be  imagined,  namely,  that  the  whole  mass,  from  the  sum- 
mit to  the  water's  edge,  is  generally  in  full  view.  I  remem- 
ber having  seen  a  mountain  first  from  the  Beagle  Channel, 
where  the  whole  sweep  from  the  summit  to  the  base  was  full 
in  view,  and  then  from  Ponsonby  Sound,  across  several  sue- 


176  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


TIERRA    DEL  FUEGO, 


cessive  ridges;  and  it  was  curious  to  observe,  in  the  latter 
case,  as  each  fresh  ridge  afforded  fresh  means  of  judging  of 
the  distance,  how  the  mountain  rose  in  height. 

Mount  Sarmiento  is  one  of  the  highest  in  Tierra  del 
Fuego,  having  an  altitude  of  six  thousand  eight  hundred  feet. 
Its  base,  for  about  an  eighth  of  its  total  height,  is  clothed  by 
dusky  woods,  and  above  this  a  field  of  snow  extends  to  the 
summit.  These  vast  piles  of  snow,  which  never  melt,  and 
seem  destined  to  last  as  long  as  the  world  holds  together, 
present  a  noble  and  even  sublime  spectacle.  Several  glaciers 
descended  in  a  winding  course  from  the  upper  great  expanse 
of  snow  to  the  sea-coast :  they  may  be  likened  to  great  frozen 
Niagaras,  and  perhaps  these  cataracts  of  blue  ice  are  full  as 
beautiful  as  the  moving  ones  of  water. 

As  the  snow-line  is  so  low  in  Tierra  del  Fuego,  we  might 
have  expected  that  many  of  the  glaciers  would  have  reached 
the  sea.  Nevertheless  I  was  astonished  when  I  first  saw  a 
range,  only  from  three  to  four  thousand  feet  in  height,  with 
every  valley  filled  with  streams  of  ice  descending  to  the  sea- 
coast.  Almost  every  arm  of  the  sea  which  penetrates  to  the 
inner  higher  chain,  not  only  in  Tierra  del  Fuego  but  on  the 
coast  for  six  hundred  and  fifty  miles  northward,  is  terminated 
by  "  tremendous  and  astonishing  glaciers,"  as  described  by 
one  of  the  officers  of  the  survey.  Great  masses  of  ice  fre- 
quently fall  from  these  icy  cliffs,  and  the  crash  re-echoes,  like 
the  broadside  of  a  man-of-war,  through  the  lonely  channels. 
It  is  known  that  earthquakes  frequently  cause  masses  of 
earth  to  fall  from  sea-cliffs;  how  terrific,  then,  would  be  the 
effect  of  a  severe  shock  (and  such  do  occur  here)  on  a  body 


MOUNTAINS.  177 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC. 


like  a  glacier,  already  in  motion  and  traversed  by  fissures ! 
I  can  readily  believe  that  the  water  would  be  fairly  beaten 
back  out  of  the  deepest  channel,  and  then,  returning  with  an 
overwhelming  force,  would  whirl  about  huge  masses  of  rock 
like  so  much  chaff.  In  Eyre's  Sound,  in  a  (south)  latitude 
corresponding  with  that  of  Paris,  there  are  immense  glaciers, 
and  yet  the  loftiest  neighboring  mountain  is  only  six  thou- 
sand two  hundred  feet  high.  In  this  sound  about  fifty  ice- 
bergs were  seen  at  one  time  floating  outward,  and  one  of 
them  must  have  been  at  least  one  hundred  and  sixty-eight 
feet  in  total  height.  Some  of  the  icebergs  were  loaded  with 
blocks,  of  no  inconsiderable  size,  of  granite  and  other  rocks, 
different  from  the  clay -slate  of  the  surrounding  mountains. 
The  glacier  farthest  from  the  Pole,  surveyed  during  the  voy- 
ages of  the  Adventure  and  Beagle,  is  in  latitude  46°  50',  in 
the  Gulf  of  Penas.  It  is  fifteen  miles  long,  and  in  one  part 
seven  broad,  and  descends  to  the  sea-coast. 

From  the  east  coast  of  the  island  of  Chiloe,  on  a  splen- 
didly clear  day  (November  26,  1834),  we  saw  the  volcano  of 
Osorno  spouting  out  volumes  of  smoke.  This  most  beautiful 
mountain,  formed  like  a  perfect  cone,  and  white  with  snow, 
stands  out  in  front  of  the  Cordillera.  Another  great  volcano, 
with  a  saddle-shaped  summit,  also  emitted  from  its  immense 
crater  little  jets  of  steam.  Afterward  we  saw  the  lofty-peak- 
ed Corcovado  (Hunchback)  —  well  deserving  the  name  of 
"famous"  (elfamoso  Corcovado).  Thus  we  beheld,  from  one 
point  of  view,  three  great  active  volcanoes,  each  about  seven 
thousand  feet  high.  In  addition  to  this,  far  to  the  south, 
there  were  other  lofty  cones  covered  with  snow,  which,  al- 

12 


178  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


though  not  known  to  be  active,  must  be  in  their  origin  vol- 
canic. The  line  of  the  Andes  is  not,  in  this  neighborhood, 
nearly  so  elevated  as  in  Chile;  neither  does  it  appear  to 
form  so  perfect  a  barrier  between  the  regions  of  the  earth. 
This  great  range,  although  running  in  a  straight  north  and 
south  line,  always  appeared  more  or  less  curved. 

FOSSIL    TREES. 

IN  the  central  part  of  the  Uspallata  range,  at  an  eleva- 
tion of  about  seven  thousand  feet,  I  observed  on  a  bare 
slope  some  snow-white  projecting  columns.  These  were  pet- 
rified fir-trees,  abruptly  broken  off,  the  upright  stumps  pro- 
jecting a  few  feet  above  the  ground.  The  trunks,  some  fifty 
in  number,  measured  from  three  to  five  feet  each  in  circum- 
ference. They  stood  a  little  way  apart  from  each  other,  but 
the  whole  formed  one  group.  I  confess  I  was  at  first  so 
much  astonished  that  I  could  scarcely  believe  the  marvellous 
story  which  this  scene  at  once  unfolded.  I  saw  the  spot 
where  a  cluster  of  fine  trees  once  waved  their  branches  on 
the  shores  of  the  Atlantic,  when  that  ocean  (now  driven  back 
seven  hundred  miles)  came  to  the  foot  of  the  Andes.  I  saw 
that  they  had  sprung  from  a  volcanic  soil,  which  had  been 
raised  above  the  level  of  the  sea,  and  that  afterward  this 
dry  land,  with  its  upright  trees,  had  been  let  down  into  the 
depths  of  the  ocean.  In  these  depths  the  formerly  dry  land 
was  covered  by  beds  of  sediment,  and  these  again  by  enor- 
mous streams  of  submarine  lava — one  such  mass  attaining 
the  thickness  of  a  thousand  feet ;  and  these  deluges  of  molten 


USPALLATA  PASS. 


FOSSIL   TREES.  181 


CHILE. 


stone  and  watery  deposits  five  times  alternately  had  been 
spread  out.  The  ocean  which  received  such  thick  masses 
must  have  been  profoundly  deep;  but  again  the  subterra- 
nean forces  exerted  themselves,  and  I  now  beheld  the  bed 
of  that  ocean  forming  a  chain  of  mountains  more  than  seven 
thousand  feet  in  height.  Nor  had  those  opposing  forces  been 
idle  which  are  always  at  work  wearing  down  the  surface  of 
the  land:  the  great  piles  of  strata  had  been  cut  through  by 
many  wide  valleys,  and  the  trees,  now  changed  into  silex, 
were  exposed  projecting  from  the  volcanic  soil  (now  changed 
into  rock),  whence  formerly,  in  a  green  and  budding  state, 
they  had  raised  their  lofty  heads.  Now  all  is  utterly  irre- 
claimable and  desert;  even  the  lichen  cannot  cling  to  the 
stony  casts  of  former  trees.  Vast  and  scarcely  comprehensi- 
ble as  such  changes  must  ever  appear,  yet  they  have  all  oc- 
curred within  a  period  which  is  recent  when  compared  with 
the  history  of  the  Cordillera;  and  the  Cordillera  itself  is  ab- 
solutely modern  as  compared  with  many  of  the  fossiliferous 
strata  of  Europe  and  America. 

In  the  valley  of  Copiapo,  in  northern  Chile,  I  stayed  two 
days  collecting  fossil  shells  and  wood.  Great  prostrate  silici- 
fied  trunks  of  trees  were  extraordinarily  numerous.  I  meas- 
ured one  which  was  fifteen  feet  in  circumference.  How  sur- 
prising it  is  that  every  atom  of  the  woody  matter  in  this 
great  cylinder  should  have  been  removed,  and  replaced  by 
silex  so  perfectly  that  each  vessel  and  pore  is  preserved! 
These  trees  all  belonged  to  the  fir-tribe.  It  was  amusing  to 
hear  the  inhabitants  discussing  the  nature  of  the  fossil  shells 
which  I  collected,  almost  in  the  same  terms  as  were  used  a 


182 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


PATAGONIA. 


century  ago   in   Europe,  namely,  whether  or  not  they  had 
been  thus  "born  by  nature/' 


AN    OLD    SEA-BED. 

THE  landscape  has  a  uniform  character  from  the  Strait 
of  Magellan  along  the  whole  eastern  coast  of  Patagonia  to 
the  Rio  Colorado;  and  it  appears  that  the  same  kind  of 
country  extends  inland  from  this  river  in  a  sweeping  line 


CAPE  FROWARD   (PATAGONIA),  STRAIT  OF  MAGELLAN. 

as  far  as  San  Luis,  and  perhaps  even  farther  north.  To  the 
eastward  of  this  curved  line  lies  the  basin  of  the  compara- 
tively damp  and  green  plains  of  Buenos  Ayres.  The  sterile 
plains  of  Mendoza  and  Patagonia  consist  of  a  bed  of  shingle, 
worn  smooth,  and  accumulated  by  the  waves  of  the  sea; 


EARTH Q  UAKES.  183 


CHILE. 


while  the  Pampas,  covered  by  thistles,  clover  and  grass,  have 
been  formed  by  the  ancient  estuary  mud  of  the  Plata. 

EARTHQUAKES. 

THIS  day  (Febuary  20, 1835)  has  been  memorable,  in  the 
annals  of  Valdivia,  for  the  most  severe  earthquake  experi- 
enced by  the  oldest  inhabitant.  I  happened  to  be  on  shore, 
and  was  lying  down  in  the  wood  to  rest  myself.  It  came 
on  suddenly,  and  lasted  two  minutes,  but  the  time  appeared 
much  longer.  The  rocking  of  the  ground  was  very  sensible. 
There  was  no  difficulty  in  standing  upright,  but  the  motion 
made  me  almost  giddy;  it  was  something  like  the  move- 
ment of  a  vessel  in  a  cross-ripple,  or  still  more  like  that  felt 
by  a  person  skating  over  thin  ice,  which  bends  under  the 
weight  of  his  body. 

A  bad  earthquake  at  once  destroys  our  oldest  associa- 
tions :  the  earth,  the  very  emblem  of  solidity,  has  moved  be- 
neath our  feet  like  a  thin  crust  over  a  fluid ;  one  second  of 
time  has  created  in  the  mind  a  strange  idea  of  insecurity 
which  hours  of  reflection  would  not  have  produced.  In  the 
forest,  as  a  breeze  moved  the  trees,  I  felt  only  the  earth  trem- 
ble, but  saw  no  other  effect.  Captain  Fitz  Roy  and  some 
officers  were  at  the  town  during  the  shock,  and  there  the 
scene  was  more  striking ;  for  although  the  houses,  from  being 
built  of  wood,  did  not  fall,  they  were  violently  shaken,  and 
the  boards  creaked  and  rattled  together.  The  people  rushed 
out-of-doors  in  the  greatest  alarm.  The  tides  were  very  cu- 
riously affected.  The  great  shock  took  place  at  the  time  of 


184  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

CHILE. 

low-water,  and  an  old  woman  who  was  on  the  beach  told  me 
that  the  water  flowed  very  quickly  (but  not  in  great  waves) 
to  high-\vater  mark,  and  then  as  quickly  returned  to  its  prop- 
er level ;  this  was  also  evident  by  the  line  of  wet  sand. 

On  the  fourth  of  March  we  entered  the  harbor  of  Con- 
cepcion.  While  the  ship  was  beating  up  to  the  anchorage 
I  landed  on  the  island  of  Quinquina.  The  mayor-domo  of 
the  estate  quickly  rode  down  to  tell  me  the  terrible  news  of 
the  great  earthquake  of  the  20th:  "That  not  a  house  in 
Concepcion  or  Talcahuano  (the  port)  was  standing;  that 
seventy  villages  were  destroyed;  and  that  a  great  wave  had 
almost  washed  away  the  ruins  of  Talcahuano."  Of  this  lat- 
ter statement  I  soon  saw  abundant  proofs,  the  whole  coast 
being  strewed  over  with  timber  and  furniture,  as  if  a  thou- 
sand ships  had  been  wrecked.  Besides  chairs,  tables,  book- 
shelves, etc.,  in  great  numbers,  there  were  several  roofs  of 
cottages,  which  had  been  transported  almost  whole.  The 
storehouses  at  Talcahuano  had  been  burst  open,  and  great 
bags  of  cotton,  yerba,  and  other  valuable  merchandise,  were 
scattered  on  the  shore.  During  my  walk  around  the  island 
I  observed  that  numerous  fragments  of  rock,  which,  from  the 
marine  productions  adhering  to  them,  must  recently  have 
been  lying  in  deep  water,  had  been  cast  up  high  on  the 
beach ;  one  of  these  was  six  feet  long,  three  broad  and  thick. 
I  believe  this  convulsion  has  done  more  to  lessen  the  size 
of  the  island  of  Quinquina  than  the  ordinary  wear-and-tear 
of  the  sea  and  weather  during  the  course  of  a  whole  century. 

The  next  day  I  landed  at  Talcahuano,  and  afterward 
rode  to  Concepcion.  Both  towns  presented  the  most  awful 


EARTHQUAKES.  185 


CHILE. 


yet  interesting  spectacle  I  ever  beheld.  To  the  person  who 
had  formerly  known  them  it  might  possibly  have  been  still 
more  impressive;  for  the  ruins  were  so  mingled  together, 
and  the  whole  scene  possessed  so  little  the  air  of  a  habita- 
ble place,  that  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  imagine  its  former 
condition.  The  earthquake  commenced  at  half -past  eleven  % 
o'clock  in  the  forenoon.  If  it  had  happened  in  the  middle 
of  the  night  the  greater  number  of  the  inhabitants  (which 
in  this  one  province  amounts  to  many  thousands)  must  have 
perished,  instead  of  less  than  a  hundred :  as  it  was,  the  in- 
variable practice  of  running  out  of  doors  at  the  first  trem- 
bling of  the  ground,  alone  saved  them.  In  Concepcion  each 
house,  or  row  of  houses,  stood  by  itself,  a  heap  or  line  of 
ruins;  but  in  Talcahuano,  owing  to  the  great  wave,  little 
more  than  one  layer  of  bricks,  tiles,  and  timber,  with  here 
and  there  part  of  a  wall  left  standing,  could  be  distinguished. 
From  this  circumstance  Concepcion,  although  not  so  com- 
pletely desolated,  was  a  more  terrible,  and,  if  I  may  so  call 
it,  picturesque  sight.  The  first  shock  was  very  sudden.  The 
mayor- domo  at  Quinquina  told  me  that  the  first  notice  he 
received  of  it  was  finding  both  the  horse  he  rode  and  himself 
rolling  together  on  the  ground.  Rising  up,  he  was  again 
thrown  down.  He  also  told  me  that  some  cows  which  were 
standing  on  the  steep  side  of  the  island  were  rolled  into  the 
sea.  The  great  wave  caused  the  destruction  of  many  cattle ; 
on  one  low  island,  near  the  head  of  the  bay,  seventy  animals 
were  washed  off  and  drowned.  Innumerable  small  trem- 
blings followed  the  great  earthquake,  and  within  the  first 
twelve  days  no  less  than  three  hundred  were  counted. 


186  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

CHILE. 

After  viewing  Concepcion,  I  cannot  understand  how  the 
greater  number  of  inhabitants  escaped  unhurt.  The  houses 
in  many  parts  fell  outward,  thus  forming  in  the  middle  of 
the  streets  little  hillocks  of  brickwork  and  rubbish.  Mr. 
Rouse,  the  English  consul,  told  us  that  he  was  at  breakfast 
when  the  first  movement  warned  him  to  run  out.  He  had 
scarcely  reached  the  middle  of  the  court-yard  when  one  side 
of  his  house  came  thundering  down.  He  had  presence  of 
mind  to  remember  that  if  he  once  got  on  the  top  of  that  part 
which  had  already  fallen,  he  would  be  safe.  Not  being  able, 
from  the  motion  of  the  ground,  to  stand,  he  crawled  upon 
his  hands  and  knees;  and  no  sooner  had  he  ascended  this 
little  eminence  than  the  other  side  of  the  house  fell  in,  the 
great  beams  sweeping  close  in  front  of  his  head.  With  his 
eyes  blinded,  and  his  mouth  choked  with  the  cloud  of  dust 
which  darkened  the  sky,  at  last  he  gained  the  street.  As 
shock  followed  shock,  at  the  interval  of  a  few  minutes,  no 
one  dared  approach  the  shattered  ruins,  and  no  one  knew 
whether  his  dearest  friends  and  relations  w^ere  not  perishing 
from  the  want  of  help.  Those  who  had  saved  any  property 
were  obliged  to  keep  a  constant  watch,  for  thieves  prowled 
about,  and,  at  each  little  trembling  of  the  ground,  with  one 
hand  they  beat  their  breasts  and  cried  mercy  (miser icordia), 
and  then  with  the  other  filched  what  they  could  from  the 
I'uins !  The  thatched  roofs  fell  over  the  fires,  and  flames  burst 
forth  in  all  parts.  Hundreds  knew  themselves  ruined,  and 
few  had  the  means  of  providing  food  for  the  day.  Generally 
speaking,  arched  door -ways  or  windows  stood  much  better 
than  any  other  parts  of  buildings.  Nevertheless,  a  poor  lame 


EARTHQUAKES.  187 


CHILE. 


old  man,  who  had  been  in  the  habit,  during  trifling  shocks, 
of  crawling  to  a  certain  door-way,  was  this  time  crushed  to 
pieces. 

Shortly  after  the  shock  a  great  wave  was  seen  from  the 
distance  of  three  or  four  miles,  approaching  in  the  middle  of 
the  bay  with  a  smooth  outline;  but  along  the  shore  it  tore 
up  cottages  and  trees  as  it  swept  onward  with  irresistible 
force.  At  the  head  of  the  bay  it  broke  in  a  fearful  line  of 
white  breakers,  which  rushed  up  to  a  height  of  twenty-three 
vertical  feet  above  the  highest  spring-tides.  Their  force  must 
have  been  prodigious,  for  at  the  fort  a  cannon  with  its  car- 
riage, estimated  at  four  tons  in  weight,  was  moved  fifteen 
feet  inward.  A  schooner  was  left  in  the  midst  of  the  ruins, 
two  hundred  yards  from  the  beach.  The  first  wave  was  fol- 
lowed by  two  others,  which  in  their  retreat  carried  away  a 
vast  wreck  of  floating  objects.  In  one  part  of  the  bay  a  ship 
was  pitched  high  and  dry  on  shore,  was  carried  off,  again 
driven  on  shore,  and  again  carried  off.  In  another  part,  two 
large  vessels  anchored  near  together  were  whirled  about,  and 
their  cables  were  thrice  wound  round  each  other:  though 
anchored  at  a  depth  of  thirty -six  feet,  they  were  for  some 
minutes  aground.  The  great  wave  must  have  travelled 
slowly,  for  the  inhabitants  of  Talcahuano  had  time  to  run 
up  the  hills  behind  the  town ;  and  some  sailors  pulled  out 
seaward,  trusting  successfully  to  their  boat  riding  securely 
over  the  swell  if  they  could  reach  it  before  it  broke.  One 
old  woman,  with  a  little  boy  four  or  five  years  old,  ran  into 
a  boat,  but  there  was  nobody  to  row  it  out — the  boat  was 
consequently  dashed  against  an  anchor  and  cut  in  twain ;  the 


188  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


old  woman  was  drowned,  but  the  child  was  picked  up  some 
hours  afterward  clinging  to  the  wreck.  Pools  of  salt-water 
were  still  standing  amidst  the  ruins  of  the  houses ;  and  chil- 
dren, making  boats  with  old  tables  and  chairs,  appeared  as 
happy  as  their  parents  were  miserable.  It  was,  however, 
exceedingly  interesting  to  observe  how  much  more  active 
and  cheerful  all  appeared  than  could  have  been  expected. 
Mr.  Rouse,  and  a  large  party  whom  he  kindly  took  under 
his  protection,  lived  for  the  first  week  in  a  garden  beneath 
some  apple-trees.  At  first  they  were  as  merry  as  if  it  had 
been  a  picnic ;  but  soon  afterward  heavy  rain  caused  much 
discomfort,  for  they  were  absolutely  without  shelter. 

The  common  people,  in  Talcahuano  thought  that  the 
earthquake  was  caused  by  some  old  Indian  women  who,  two 
years  ago,  being  offended,  stopped  the  volcano  of  Antuco. 
This  silly  belief  is  curious,  because  it  shows  that  experience 
has  taught  them  to  observe  that  there  exists  a  relation  be- 
tween the  suppressed  action  of  the  volcanoes  and  the  trem- 
bling of  the  ground;  and  particularly  because  in  this  in- 
stance, according  to  Captain  Fitz  Roy,  there  is  reason  to  be- 
lieve that  Antuco  was  noway  affected.  The  island  of  Juan 
Fernandez,  three  hundred  and  sixty  miles  to  the  north-west, 
was,  at  the  time  of  the  great  shock  of  the  20th,  violently 
shaken,  so  that  the  trees  beat  against  each  other,  and  a  vol- 
cano burst  forth  under  water  close  to  the  shore.  These  facts 
are  remarkable,  because  this  island,  during  the  earthquake  of 
1751,  was  then  also  affected  more  violently  than  other  places 
at  an  equal  distance  from  Concepcion,  and  this  seems  to 
show  some  subterranean  connection  between  these  two  points. 


EARTHQUAKES. 


189 


CHILE. 


Chiloe,  about  three  hundred  and  forty  miles  southward  of 
Concepcion,  appears  to  have  been  shaken  more  strongly  than 


ISLAND  OF  JUAN  FERNANDEZ   (ROBINSON  CRUSOE'S). 

the  intermediate  district  of  Valdivia,  where  the  volcano  of 
Villarica  was  noway  affected,  while  in  the  Cordillera  in  front 
of  Chiloe  two  of  the  volcanoes  burst  forth  at  the  same  in- 
stant in  violent  action.  These  two  volcanoes  and  some 
neighboring  ones  continued  for  a  long  time  in  eruption,  and 
ten  months  afterward  were  again  influenced  by  an  earth- 
quake at  Concepcion.  Some  men,  cutting  wood  near  the 
base  of  one  of  these  volcanoes,  did  not  perceive  the  shock  of 
the  20th,  although  the  whole  surrounding  province  was  then 


MAP  OF  THE  ISLAND   OF  JUAN  FERNANDEZ. 


190 


WHAT  MR.   DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


trembling.  Here  we  have  an  eruption  relieving  and  taking 
the  place  of  an  earthquake,  as  would  have  happened  at  Con- 
cepcion,  according  to  the  belief  of  the  common  people,  if  the 
volcano  of  Antuco  had  not  been  closed  by  witchcraft.  Two 
years  and  three-quarters  afterward  Valdivia  and  Chiloe  were 
again  shaken,  more  violently  than  on  the  20th,  and  an  isl- 
and in  the  Chonos  Archi- 
pelago was  permanently 
raised  more  than  eight 
feet.  We  may,  therefore, 
confidently  come  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  forces 
which,  slowly  and  by  lit- 
tle starts,  uplift  conti- 
nents, and  those  which 
at  successive  periods  pour 
forth  volcanic  matter  from 
open  orifices,  are  the  same. 
It  is  remarkable  that  while  Talcahuano  and  Callao  (near 
Lima),  both  situated  at  the  head  of  large  shallow  bays,  have 
suffered  during  every  severe  earthquake  from  great  waves, 
Valparaiso,  seated  close  to  the  edge  of  profoundly  deep  water, 
has  never  been  overwhelmed,  though  so  often  shaken  by  the 
severest  shocks. 

I  have  not  attempted  to  give  any  detailed  description 
of  the  appearance  of  Concepcion,  for  I  feel  that  it  is  quite 
impossible  to  convey  the  mingled  feelings  which  I  experi- 
enced. Several  of  the  officers  visited  it  before  me,  but  their 
strongest  language  failed  to  give  a  just  idea  of  the  scene  of 


CRUSOE. 


EARTH Q  UAKES.  191 


CHILE. 


desolation.  It  is  a  bitter  and  humiliating  thing  to  see  works 
which  have  cost  man  so  much  time  and  labor  overthrown  in 
one  minute;  yet  compassion  for  the  inhabitants  was  almost 
instantly  banished  by  the  surprise  in  seeing  a  state  of  things 
produced  in  a  moment  of  time  which  one  was  accustomed 
to  attribute  to  a  succession  of  ages.  In  my  opinion,  we  have 
scarcely  beheld,  since  leaving  England,  any  sight  so  deeply 
interesting. 

Earthquakes  alone  are  sufficient  to  destroy  the  prosperity 
of  any  country.  If  beneath  England  the  now  inert  subter- 
ranean forces  should  exert  those  powers  which  most  assured- 
ly in  former  geological  ages  they  have  exerted,  how  complete- 
ly would  the  entire  condition  of  the  country  be  changed  ! 
What  would  become  of  the  lofty  houses,  thickly  packed 
cities,  great  manufactories,  the  beautiful  public  and  private 
edifices  ?  If  the  new  period  of  disturbance  were  first  to  com- 
mence by  some  great  earthquake  in  the  dead  of  the  night, 
how  terrific  would  be  the  carnage !  England  would  at  once 
become  bankrupt;  all  papers,  records,  and  accounts  would 
from  that  moment  be  lost.  Government  being  unable  to 
collect  the  taxes,  and  failing  to  maintain  its  authority,  the 
hand  of  violence  and  rapine  would  remain  uncontrolled.  In 
every  large  town  famine  would  go  forth,  pestilence  and  death 
following  in  its  train  ! 

On  the  14th  of  May  we  reached  Coquimbo,  and  in  the 
evening  Captain  Fitz  Roy  and  myself  were  dining  with  Mr. 
Edwards,  an  English  resident,  when  a  short  earthquake  hap- 
pened. I  heard  the  forthcoming  rumble;  but,  from  the 
screams  of  the  ladies,  the  running  of  the  servants,  and  the 


192  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

CHILE. 

rush  of  several  of  the  gentlemen  to  the  doorway,  1  could  not 
distinguish  the  motion.  Some  of  the  women  afterward  were 
crying  with  terror,  and  one  gentleman  said  he  should  not  be 
able  to  sleep  all  night,  or  if  he  did,  it  would  only  be  to  dream 
of  falling  houses.  The  father  of  this  person  had  lately  lost 
all  his  property  at  Talcahuano,  and  he  himself  had  only  just 
escaped  a  falling  roof  at  Valparaiso,  in  1822.  He  mentioned 
a  curious  coincidence  which  then  happened :  he  was  playing 
at  cards,  when  a  German,  one  of  the  party,  got  up,  and  said 
he  would  never  sit  in  a  room  in  these  countries  with  the 
door  shut,  as,  owing  to  his  having  done  so,  he  had  nearly 
lost  his  life  at  Copiapo.  Accordingly  he  opened  the  door, 
and  no  sooner  had  he  done  this  than  he  cried  out,  "  Here  it 
comes  again !"  and  the  famous  shock  commenced.  The  whole 
party  escaped.  The  danger  in  an  earthquake  is  not  from 
the  time  lost  in  opening  a  door,  but  from  the  chance  of  its 
being  jammed  by  the  movement  of  the  walls. 

It  is  impossible  to  be  much  surprised  at  the  fear  which 
natives  and  old  residents,  though  some  of  them  known  to  be 
men  of  great  command  of  mind,  so  generally  experience 
during  earthquakes.  I  think,  however,  this  excess  of  panic 
may  be  partly  attributed  to  a  want  of  habit  in  governing 
their  fear,  as  it  is  not  a  feeling  they  are  ashamed  of.  Indeed, 
the  natives  do  not  like  to  see  a  person  indifferent.  I  heard 
of  two  Englishmen  who,  sleeping  in  the  open  air  during  a 
smart  shock,  knowing  that  there  was  no  danger,  did  not  rise. 
The  natives  cried  out  indignantly,  "  Look  at  those  heretics ; 
they  will  not  even  get  out  of  their  beds !" 


RAINFALL.  193 


CHILE. 


RAINFALL. 

As  we  travelled  north,  along  the  coast  from  Valparaiso, 
(May,  1835),  the  country  became  more  and  more  barren.  In 
the  valleys  there  was  scarcely  water  enough  for  any  irriga- 
tion, and  the  intermediate  land  was  quite  bare,  not  support- 
ing even  goats.  In  the  spring,  after  the  winter  showers,  a 
thin  pasture  rapidly  springs  up,  and  cattle  are  then  driven 
down  from  the  Cordillera  to  graze  for  a  short  time.  It  is 
curious  to  observe  how  the  seeds  of  the  grass  and  other 
plants  seem  to  accommodate  themselves,  as  if  by  habit,  to 
the  quantity  of  rain  which  falls  on  different  parts  of  this 
coast.  •  One  shower  far  northward  at  Copiapo  produces  as 
great  an  effect  on  the  vegetation  as  two  at  Guasco,  and  as 
three  or  four  in  the  Conchalee  district.  At  Valparaiso  a 
winter  so  dry  as  greatly  to  injure  the  pasture  would,  at  Gu- 
asco, produce  the  most  unusual  abundance.  At  Conchalee, 
which  is  only  sixty-seven  miles  north  of  Valparaiso,  rain  is 
not  expected  until  the  end  of  May ;  whereas,  at  Valparaiso, 
some  generally  falls  early  in  April. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  May,  at  Coquimbo,  it 
rained  lightly,  the  first  time  this  year,  for  about  five  hours. 
The  farmers,  who  plant  corn  near  the  sea -coast,  where  the 
atmosphere  is  moister,  taking  advantage  of  this  shower,  would 
break  up  the  ground;  after  a  second,  they  would  put  the 
seed  in  ;  and  if  a  third  shower  should  fall,  they  would  reap 
a  good  harvest  in  the  spring.  It  was  interesting  to  watch 
the  effect  of  this  trifling  amount  of  moisture.  Twelve  hours 
afterward  the  ground  appeared  as  dry  as  ever;  yet  after  an 

13 


194  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


CHILE. 


interval  of  ten  days  all  the  hills  were  faintly  tinged  with 
green  patches,  the  grass  being  sparingly  scattered  in  hair-like 
fibres  a  full  inch  in  length.  Before  this  shower  every  part 
of  the  surface  was  bare  as  on  a  high-road.  The  epithets  "  bar- 
ren" and  "sterile"  are  certainly  applicable  to  northern  Chile, 
yet  even  here  there  are  not  many  spaces  of  two  hundred 
yards  square  where  some  little  bush,  cactus,  or  lichen  may 
not  be  discovered  by  careful  examination ;  and  in  the  soil 
seeds  lie  dormant,  ready  to  spring  up  during  the  first  rainy 
winter. 

In  the  valley  of  Copiapo  the  small  quantity  of  cultivated 
land  does  not  so  much  depend  on  inequalities  of  level  and 
consequent  unfitness  for  inigation,  as  on  the  small  supply 
of  water.  The  river  this  year  was  remarkably  full :  high 
up  in  the  valley  it  reached  to  the  horses'  bellies,  and  was 
about  fifteen  yards  wide,  and  rapid ;  lower  down  it  becomes 
smaller  and  smaller,  and  is  generally  quite  lost,  as  happened 
during  one  period  of  thirty  years,  so  that  not  a  drop  entered 
the  sea.  The  inhabitants  watch  a  storm  over  the  Cordillera 
with  great  interest,  as  one  good  fall  of  snow  provides  them 
with  water  for  the  ensuing  year.  This  is  of  infinitely  more 
consequence  than  rain  in  the  lower  country.  Eain,  as  often 
as  it  falls — which  is  about  once  in  every  two  or  three  years- 
is  a  great  advantage,  because  the  cattle  and  mules  can  for 
some  time  afterward  find  a  little  pasture  on  the  mountains. 
But  without  snow  on  the  Andes,  desolation  extends  through- 
out the  valley.  It  is  on  record  that  three  times  nearly  all 
the  inhabitants  have  been  obliged  to  emigrate  to  the  south. 
This  year  there  was  plenty  of  water,  and  every  man  irrigated 


HIBERNATION   OF  ANIMALS.  195 


ARGENTINE    REPUBLIC  AND   URUGUAY. 


his  ground  as  much  as  he  chose;  but  it  has  frequently  been 
necessary  to  post  soldiers  at  the  sluices,  to  see  that  each  estate 
took  only  its  proper  allowance  during  so  many  hours  in  the 
week. 


HIBERNATION   OF   ANIMALS. 

WHEN  we  first  arrived  at  Bahia  Blanca,  September  7th, 
1832,  we  thought  nature  had  granted  scarcely  a  living  crea- 
ture to  this  sandy  and  dry  country.  By  digging,  however,  in 
the  ground,  several  insects,  large  spiders,  and  lizards  were 
found  in  a  half-torpid  state.  On  the  15th,  a  few  animals  be- 
gan to  appear,  and  by  the  18th  (three  days  from  the  equi- 
nox), everything  announced  the  commencement  of  spring. 
The  plains  were  ornamented  by  the  flowers  of  a  pink  wood- 
sorrel,  wild  pease,  and  geraniums ;  and  the  birds  began  to  lay 
their  eggs.  Numerous  insects  were  crawling  slowly  about; 
wrhile  the  lizard  tribe,  the  constant  inhabitants  of  a  sandy 
soil,  darted  about  in  every  direction.  During  the  first  eleven 
days,  while  nature  was  dormant,  the  average  temperature  was 
51°;  and  in  the  middle  of  the  day  the  thermometer  seldom 
ranged  above  55°.  On  the  eleven  succeeding  days,  in  which 
all  living  things  became  so  animated,  the  average  was  58°, 
and  the  range  in  the  middle  of  the  day  between  60°  and  70°. 
Here,  then,  an  increase  of  seven  degrees  in  the  average  tem- 
perature, but  a  greater  one  of  extreme  heat,  was  sufficient  to 
awaken  the  functions  of  life.  At  Montevideo,  from  which  we 
had  just  before  sailed,  in  the  twenty-three  days  included  be- 
tween the  26th  of  July  and  the  19th  of  August,  the  average 


196  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN   SAW. 


THE  OCEAN. 


temperature  was  58.4°,  the  average  hottest  day  being  65.5°, 
and  the  coldest  46°.  The  lowest  point  to  which  the  thermom- 
eter fell  was  41.5°,  and  occasionally  in  the  middle  of  the  day 
it  rose  to  69°  or  70°.  Yet  with  this  high  temperature,  almost 
every  beetle,  several  genera  of  spiders,  snails,  and  land-shells, 
toads  and  lizards,  were  all  lying  torpid  beneath  stones.  But 
we  have  seen  that  at  Bahia  Blanca,  which  is  four  degrees 
southward,  and  therefore  has  a  climate  only  a  very  little 
colder,  this  same  temperature,  with  a  rather  less  extreme 
heat,  was  sufficient  to  awake  all  orders  of  animated  beings. 
This  shows  how  nicely  the  arousing  of  hibernating  animals 
is  governed  by  the  usual  climate  of  the  district,  and  not  by 
the  absolute  heat. 


THE    OCEAN. 

WHAT  are  the  boasted  glories  of  the  illimitable  ocean? 
A  tedious  waste,  a  desert  of  water,  as  the  Arabian  calls  it. 
No  doubt  there  are  some  delightful  scenes:  a  moonlight 
night,  with  the  clear  heavens  and  the  dark  glittering  sea, 
and  the  white  sails  filled  by  the  soft  air  of  a  gently-blow- 
ing trade-wind ;  a  dead  calm,  with  the  heaving  surface  pol- 
ished like  a  mirror,  and  all  still  except  the  occasional  flap- 
ping of  the  canvas.  It  is  well  once  to  behold  a  squall  with 
its  rising  arch  and  coming  fury,  or  the  heavy  gale  of  wind 
and  mountainous  waves.  I  confess,  however,  my  imagination 
had  painted  something  more  grand,  more  terrific  in  the  full- 
grown  storm.  It  is  an  incomparably  finer  spectacle  when 
beheld  on  shore,  where  the  waving  trees,  the  wild  flight  of 


LAGOON  ISLANDS. 


197 


THE   PACIFIC  AND   INDIAN   OCEANS. 


the  birds,  the  dark  shadows  and  bright  lights,  the  rushing 
of  the  torrents,  all  proclaim  the  strife  of  the  unloosed  ele- 
ments.    At  sea  the  al- 
batross and  little  petrel 
fly  as  if  the  storm  were 
their  proper  sphere,  the 
water    rises    and    sinks 
as  if  fulfilling  its  usual 
task ;  the  ship  alone  and 
its  inhabitants  seem  the 
objects  of  wrath.     On  a 
forlorn  and  weather-beat- 
en coast  the  scene  is  in- 
deed different,  but  the  feelings  partake  more  of  horror  than 
of  wild  delight. 

It  is  necessary  to  sail  over  the  Pacific  to  comprehend  its 
immensity.  Moving  quickly  onward  for  weeks  together,  we 
meet  with  nothing  but  the  same  blue,  profoundly  deep  ocean. 
Even  within  the  archipelagoes  the  islands  are  mere  specks, 
and  far  distant  one  from  the  other.  Accustomed  to  look  at 
maps  drawn  on  a  small  scale,  where  dots,  shading,  and  names 
are  crowded  together,  we  do  not  rightly  judge  how  infinite- 
ly small  the  proportion  of  dry  land  is  to  the  water  of  this 
vast  expanse. 


THE   ALBATROSS. 


LAGOON   ISLANDS. 

ON  the  first  of  April,  1836,  we  arrived  in  view  of  the 
Keeling  or  Cocos  Islands,  situated  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  and 


198 


WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


INDIAN  OCEAN. 


KEELING  ATOLL 


about  six  hundred  miles  distant  from  the  coast  of  Sumatra. 

This  is  one  of  the  lagoon 
islands  (or  atolls)  of  cor- 
al formation.  Its  rincr- 

o 

formed  reef  is  surmount- 
ed in  the  greater  part 
of  its  length  by  narrow 
islets.  On  the  north- 
ern or  leeward  side  there 
is  an  opening  through 
which  vessels  can  pass 
to  the  anchorage  within 
—the  shallow,  clear,  and 
still  water  of  the  lagoon, 
which,  resting  in  its  great- 
er part  on  white  sand,  is,  when  illumined  by  a  vertical  sun, 
of  the  most  vivid  green. 

On  the  6th  I  accompanied  Captain  Fitz  Koy  to  an  island 
at  the  head  of  the  lagoon.  The  channel  was  exceedingly  in- 
tricate, winding  through  fields  of  delicately  branched  corals. 
When  we  arrived  at  the  head,  we  crossed  a  narrow  islet, 
and  found  a  great  surf  breaking  on  the  windward  coast.  I 
can  hardly  explain  the  reason,  but  there  is  to  my  mind  much 
grandeur  in  the  view  of  the  outer  shores  of  these  lagoon 
islands.  There  is  a  simplicity  in  the  barrier-like  beach,  the 
margin  of  green  bushes  and  tall  cocoa-nuts,  the  solid  flat  of 
dead  coral-rock,  strewed  here  and  there  with  great  loose  frag- 
ments, and  the  line  of  furious  breakers,  all  rounding  away 
toward  either  hand.  The  ocean,  throwing  its  waters  over 


LAGOON  ISLANDS. 


199 


INDIAN   OCEAN. 


the  broad  reef,  appears  an  invincible,  all-powerful  enemy ;  yet 
we  see  it  resisted  and  even  conquered  by  means  which  at 
first  seem  most  weak  and  inefficient.  It  is  not  that  the  ocean 
spares  the  rock  of  coral:  the  great  fragments  scattered  over 
the  reef,  and  heaped  on  the  beach,  whence  the  tall  cocoa-nut 
springs,  plainly  bespeak  the  unrelenting  power  of  the  waves. 
Nor  are  any  periods  of  repose  granted.  The  long  swell 
caused  by  the  gentle  but  steady  action  of  the  trade-wind, 
always  blowing  in  one  direction  over  a  wide  area,  causes 
breakers  almost  equalling  in  force  those  during  a  gale  of 
wind  in  the  temperate  regions,  and  which  never  cease  to  rage. 
It  is  impossible  to  behold  these  waves  without  feeling  a  con- 


VIEW  OF  AX  ATOLL. 


viction  that  an  island,  though  built  of  the  hardest  rock,  let 
it  be  porphyry,  granite,  or  quartz,  would  ultimately  yield,  and 
be  demolished  by  such  an  irresistible  power.  Yet  these  low, 
insignificant  coral  islets  stand  and  are  victorious;  for  here 
another  power,  as  an  antagonist,  takes  part  in  the  contest. 


200  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 

INDIAN  OCEAN. 

The  living  polyps  separate  the  atoms  of  carbonate  of  lime, 
one  by  one,  from  the  foaming  breakers,  and  unite  them  into 
a  symmetrical  structure.  Let  the  hurricane  tear  up  its  thou- 
sand huge  fragments;  yet  what  will  that  tell  against  the  ac- 
cumulated labor  of  myriads  of  architects  at  work  night  and 
day,  month  after  month  ?  Thus  do  we  see  the  soft  and  gelati- 


COCOA-NUT   PALM. 


nous  body  of  a  polypus,  through  the  agency  of  the  vital  laws, 
conquering  the  great  mechanical  power  of  the  waves  of  an 
ocean  which  neither  the  art  of  man  nor  the  inanimate  works 
of  nature  could  successfully  resist. 

A  few  miles  north  of  Keeling  there  is  another  small  atoll, 
the  lagoon  of  which  is  nearly  filled  up  with  coral  mud.     Cap- 


CORAL    ARCHITECTS. 


LAGOON  ISLANDS.  203 


INDIAN   OCEAN. 


tain  Ross  found  embedded  in  the  conglomerate  on  the  outer 
coast  a  well -moulded  fragment  of  greenstone,  rather  larger 
than  a  man's  head.  He  and  the  men  with  him  were  so  much 
surprised  at  this  that  they  brought  it  away  and  preserved 
it  as  a  curiosity.  The  occurrence  of  this  one  stone,  where 
every  other  particle  of  matter  is  of  lime,  certainly  is  very 
puzzling.  The  island  has  scarcely  ever  been  visited,  nor  is 
it  probable  that  a  ship  had  been  wrecked  there.  From  the 
absence  of  any  better  explanation,  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  must  have  become  entangled  in  the 
roots  of  some  large  tree ;  when,  however, 
I  considered  the  great  distance  from  the 
nearest  land,  the  combination  of  chances 
against  a  stone  thus  being  entangled,  the 
tree  washed  into  the  sea,  floated  so  far, 
then  landed  safely,  and  the  stone  finally 
so  embedded  as  to  allow  of  its  discov- 
ery, I  was  almost  afraid  of  imagining  a  means  of  transport 
apparently  so  improbable.  It  was,  therefore,  with  great  in- 
terest that  I  found  Chamisso,  the  justly  distinguished  nat- 
uralist who  accompanied  Kotzebue,  stating  that  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  Radack  Archipelago  (a  group  of  lagoon  islands 
in  the  midst  of  the  Pacific)  obtained  stones  for  sharpening 
their  instruments  by  searching  the  roots  of  trees  which  are 
cast  upon  the  beach.  It  will  be  evident  that  this  must  have 
happened  several  times,  since  laws  have  been  established  that 
such  stones  belong  to  the  chief,  and  a  punishment  is  inflicted 
on  any  one  who  attempts  to  steal  them. 

In  the  morning  of  April  12th  we  stood  out  of  the  lagoon 


204  WHAT  MR.  DARWIN  SAW. 


INDIAN   OCEAN. 


on  our  passage  to  the  Isle  of  France.  I  am  glad  we  have  vis- 
ited these  islands:  such  formations  surely  rank  high  among 
the  wonderful  objects  of  this  world.  Captain  Fitz  Roy  found 
no  bottom  with  a  line  seven  thousand  two  hundred  feet  in 
length,  at  the  distance  of  only  two  thousand  two  hundred 


GROWTH   OF    CORAL  OX  A  MOUNTAIN   SLOWLY   SUBSIDING. 

yards  from  the  shore ;  hence  this  island  forms  a  lofty  sub- 
marine mountain,  with  sides  steeper  even  than  those  of  the 
most  abrupt  volcanic  cone.  The  saucer  -  shaped  summit  is 
nearly  ten  miles  across;  and  every  single  atom,  from  the 
least  particle  to  the  largest  fragment  of  rock  in  this  great 
pile  (which,  however,  is  small  compared  with  very  many  la- 
goon islands),  bears  the  stamp  of  having  been  subjected  to 
organic  arrangement.  We  feel  surprised  when  travellers  tell 
us  of  the  vast  dimensions  of  the  Pyramids  and  other  great 
ruins;  but  how  utterly  insignificant  are  the  greatest  of  these 
when  compared  to  these  mountains  of  stone,  accumulated  by 
the  agency  of  various  minute  and  tender  animals !  This  is 
a  wonder  which  does  not  at  first  strike  the  eye  of  the  body, 
but,  after  reflection,  the  eye  of  reason. 


INDEX 

OF  NAMES  OF  NOTABLE  PERSONS  MEN- 
TIONED IN  THE  FOREGOING  PAGES. 


JOHN  J.  AUDUBON. 


INDEX 

OF  NAMES  OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED  IN  THE  FORE- 
GOING PAGES. 

V minium,  JOHN  JAMES.  (Page  69.)  An  American  ornithologist , 
born  of  French  parents  in  Louisiana,  May  4th,  1780 ;  died  in  New 
York  city,  January  27th,  1851.  His  great  work,  "The  Birds  of 
America,"  began  to  be  published  in  1826,  and  was  thirteen  years 
in  reaching  completion.  He  himself  furnished  the  colored  draw- 
ings from  which  the  copperplates,  upward  of  four  hundred  in  num- 
ber, were  engraved.  Some  of  these  plates  are  exhibited  at  the  Xew 
York  Museum  of  Natural  History  in  Central  Park.  His  account  of 
the  carrion-crows  or  black  vultures,  to  which  Mr.  Darwin  refers,  is 
given  in  Audubon's  "Ornithological  Biography"  (vol.  ii., p.  33),  pub- 
lished in  1831-49. 

Bonpland,  AIME.  (Page  145.)  A  French  botanist;  born 
at  La  Rochelle,  August  22d,  1773;  died  May  4th,  1858,  at  Santa 
Anna,  in  the  Argentine  Province  of  Corrientes.  He  accompanied 
Ilumboldt  in  his  journey  to  South  America  in  1799.  In  1816  he 
went  again  to  that  country,  and  lived  by  turns  in  La  Plata  (now  the 
Argentine  Confederation),  Uruguay,  Paraguay  (at  first  as  a  prisoner 
of  war),  and  Brazil.  He  was  unwilling  to  return  to  Europe. 

Burchell,  WILLIAM  J.  (Page  73.)  An  English  traveller.  His 
"  Travels  in  the  Interior  of  Southern  Africa  "  was  published  in  Lon- 
don in  1822-24. 

Byron,  JOHN.  (Page  44.)  An  English  naval  commander;  born 
November  8th,  1723;  died  April  10th,  1786  :  the  grandfather  of  Lord 


ADMIRAL  JOHN    BYKON. 


NAMES   OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED. 


209 


Byron,  the  poet.  He  accompanied  Anson  in  his  voyage  round  the 
world,  leaving  England  in  September,  1740.  In  May,  1741,  he  was 
shipwrecked  on  the  west  coast  of  Patagonia.  The  great  hardships 
which  he  suffered  in  consequence  of  this  he  afterward  related  in  his 
''Narrative  of  the  Honorable  John  Byron  (Commodore  in  a  late  Ex- 
pedition Round  the  World),  containing  an  Account  of  the  great  Dis- 
tresses suffered  by  Himself  and  his  Companions  on  the  Coast  of  Pat- 
agonia, from  the  year  1740  till  their  Arrival  in  England,  1746  "  (Lon- 
don, 1768).  The  "  late  expedition  "  referred  to  in  this  title  took  place 
in  1764-66. 

Chamisso,  ADELBERT.  (Page  203.)  A  poet  arid  naturalist; 
born  of  French  parentage  at  Boncourt,  in  Champagne,  France,  Jan- 
uary 27th,  1781 ;  died  in  Berlin,  August  21st,  1838.  At  an  early  age 
he  removed  with  his  parents  to  Berlin,  where  he  was  educated,  and  en- 
tered the  Prussian  mil- 
itary service.  His  writ- 
ings, consequently,  were 
in  German.  In  1815-18 
he  accompanied  Kotze- 
bue  in  the  Romanoff 
expedition  round  the 
world,  and  besides  fur- 
nishing part  of  the 
Report  which  appeared 
in  1821,  wrote  a  sepa- 
rate account,  first  pub- 
lished in  1836-39.  He 
is  best  known  to  English 

O 

readers  as  the  author 
of  the  remarkable  story 
called  u  Peter  Schle- 
mihl" — the  man  who 
parted  with  his  shadow. 
14 


CAPTAIN   JAMES   COOK. 


210 


NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED. 


Cook,  JAMES.  (Pp.  94,  174.)  An  English  navigator ;  born  October 
27th,  1728,  in  Yorkshire;  killed  by  the  Sandwich  Islanders  February 
14th,  1779.  As  master  of  the  sloop  Mercury  he  assisted  in  the  tak- 
ing of  Quebec  by  Wolfe,  in  1759.  His  first  voyage  to  the  southern 
hemisphere  was  in  the  employ  of  the  Government,  beginning  in  1768. 
He  visited  Tahiti  and  New  Zealand,  and  explored  the  east  coast  of 
Australia,  as  Dampier  had  done  the  west.  He  returned  to  England 


KARAKAKOOA  BAY,  THE   SCENE  OF   CAPTAIN   COOK'S  DEATH. 

in  1771,  and  was  sent  out  the  following  year,  in  command  of  the 
Resolution,  in  search  of  the  Antarctic  continent.  On  this  voyage 
he  discovered  New  Caledonia,  and  returned  to  England  in  1775. 
Captain  Cook's  third  voyage  was  undertaken  in  1776,  for  the  sake 
of  a  reward  offered  by  Parliament  to  the  discoverer  of  a  northern 
passage  from  the  Pacific  to  the  Atlantic.  He  discovered  the  Sand- 
wich Islands  in  January,  1778,  afterward  explored  Bearing  Strait,  and 
on  sailing  homeward  stopped  again  at  the  islands.  The  natives  of 


NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED.  211 

Hawaii  showed  themselves  unfriendly,  and  a  quarrel  having  arisen 
during  a  landing,  they  fell  upon  Cook  and  his  men,  and  the  great 
captain  was  slain.  The  Journal  of  Captain  Cook's  second  voyage 
(the  one  referred  to  by  Mr.  Darwin)  was  published  in  London  in 
177T;  the  Journal  of  the  last  voyage,  in  1781. 

Cowley,  Captain.  (Page  77.)  An  English  navigator,  who,  as 
did  also  Captain  William  Dampier,  accompanied  Captain  John  Cooke 
in  a  voyage  round  the  world  in  1683-84.  In  the  year  first  named 
Cowley  happened  to  be  in  Virginia,  and  was  prevailed  upon  by  Cooke 
to  go  as  sailing-master  of  his  ship  Revenge,  on  a  trading  voyage  to 
Hayti.  Cooke,  however,  was  really  a  buccaneer,  and  the  story  was 
only  a  pretence.  They  sailed,  then,  August  23d,  1683,  for  the  South 
Seas,  by  way  of  the  African  coast  (where  they  captured  a  new  and 
better-armed  ship,  to  which  they  transferred  themselves  and  the  name 
of  their  old  ship),  Brazil,  the  Falkland  Islands,  Tierra  del  Fuego,  the 
island  of  Juan  Fernandez,  the  Lobos  Islands  west  of  Peru,  Panama, 
and  the  Galapagos  (i.  e.,  Turtle)  Islands,  which  were  sighted  May  31st, 
1684.  A  month  later  Cooke  died,  and,  in  September,  Cowley  left  the 
Revenge  to  sail  the  Nicholas,  another  pirate  ship,  with  which  they  had 
kept  company  after  rounding  Cape  Horn.  His  course  now  lay  to  the 
Asiatic  coast  and  archipelago.  At  Timor,  in  December,  1685,  Cowley 
quitted  the  Nicholas  and  went  to  Batavia,  where,  in  the  following 
March,  he  embarked  for  Holland,  and  reached  London  October  12th, 
1686.  This  account  of  him  will  be  found  in  Robert  Kerr's  "  General 
History  and  Collection  of  Voyages  and  Travels"  (Edinburgh,  1814).' 

Dampier,  WILLIAM.  (Page  77.)  An  English  navigator ;  born 
1652,  in  Somersetshire  ;  the  year  of  his  death  is  unknown,  but  it  was 
later  than  1711.  He  had  a  most  adventurous  life  on  sea  and  on  land 
in  both  hemispheres.  In  July,  1682,  after  a  season  of  buccaneering, 
he  arrived  in  Virginia,  and  in  the  following  year  fell  in  with  Captain 
John  Cooke,  a  native  of  St.  Kitts,  in  the  West  Indies,  and  joined  him 
(with  less  compunction  than  did  Captain  Cowley)  in  his  piratical  ex- 
pedition. He  remained  by  the  Revenge  wrhen  Cowley  left  it,  and 


212  NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED. 

cruised  about  the  Pacific,  both  on  the  American  coast  and  in  the  East 
Indies,  till  May  4th,  1688,  when,  wearying  of  his  wretched  mode  of 
life,  he  abandoned  it  at  the  Nicobar  Islands  and  arrived  at  Atcheen, 


CAPTAIN    WILLIAM  DAMP1EK. 


in  Sumatra,  in  June.  He  afterward  went  to  Tonquin,  and  returned 
to  Atcheen  in  April,  1689.  On  January  25th,  1691,  he  set  sail  for 
England,  and  reached  London  September  16th,  after  an  absence  of 
twelve  and  a  half  years.  He  told  his  marvellous  story  in  a  book 


NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED.  213 

called  a  "  New  Voyage  Round  the  World,"  published  in  London  in 
1697.  Being  then  taken  into  the  English  service,  and  put  in  com- 
mand of  the  Roebuck^  he  sailed  in  1699,  on  behalf  of  the  Government, 
to  the  Southern  Ocean,  exploring  the  coasts  of  Australia  and  New 
Guinea,  and  discovering  many  unknown  lands.  On  his  homeward 
voyage  he  was  shipwrecked  on  Ascension  Island  in  February,  1701, 
but  reached  London  the  same  year  and  again  told  his  story  in  a  book. 
He  made  at  least  two  more  voyages — with  Captain  William  Funnell, 
1703-05,  and  with  Captains  Woods  Rogers  and  Stephen  Courtney, 
1708-11 — for  the  plundering  of  Spanish  ships  in  the  South  Sea.  On 
the  latter  voyage  Alexander  Selkirk  (the  original  Robinson  Crusoe) 
wras  found  on  the  island  of  Juan  Fernandez  arid  taken  on  board  as 
one  of  the  mates. 

Falconer,  RICHARD.  (Page  46.)  An  English  navigator;  au- 
thor of  a  work  describing  his  "  Voyages,  Dangerous  Adventures,  and 
Imminent  Escapes  "  (London,  1724). 

Fitz  Roy,  ROBERT.  (Pp.  102, 105,  151,  174,  183,  188, 191, 198, 
204.)  An  English  navigator  and  meteorologist ;  born  July  5th,  1805 ; 
died  April  30th,  1865.  He  entered  the  navy  in  1819,  arid  in  1828  was 
associated  with  Captain  King  in  an  exploring  expedition  to  the  coasts 
of  Patagonia  and  Chile.  In  1831  he  commanded  the  Beagle  in  the 
expedition  round  the  world  which  Mr.  Darwin  accompanied  as  nat- 
uralist. The  results  of  both  these  voyages  were  published  under  the 
title,  "Narrative  of  the  Surveying  Voyages  of  H.M.SS.  Adventure 
and  Beagle,  1826-1836"  (London,  1839).  Captain  Fitz  Roy  was  after- 
ward Governor  of  New  Zealand.  His  last  years  were  devoted  to  me- 
teorological study  and  observations. 

Gould,  JOHN.  (Page  50.)  An  English  ornithologist ;  born 
September  14th,  1804,  at  Lyme-Regis,  in  Dorsetshire,  England,  and 
still  living  (1879).  His  first  published  work,  "A  Century  of  Birds 
from  the  Himalaya  Mountains,"  appeared  in  1832 ;  his  second,  "  The 
Birds  of  Europe,"  in  1832-37.  The  next  two  years  were  spent  in 
travels  in  Australia,  which  led  to  two  other  important  publications, 


214  NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED. 

"The  Mammals  of  Australia"  (1845),  and  "The  Birds  of  Australia" 
(1848-1869).  He  is  also  the  author  of  a  "Hand-book  to  the  Birds  of 
Australia"  (1865),  and  "The  Birds  of  Great  Britain"  (1862-1873). 
Mr.  Gould  contributed  the  chapter  on  birds  in  the  zoological  report 
of  the  voyage  of  the  Beagle. 

Head,  FKANCIS  BOND.  (Page  130.)  A  British  officer ;  born  near 
Rochester,  Kent,  England,  in  1793 ;  died  July,  1869.  While  an  army 
captain  he  went  to  South  America  in  1825,  as  agent  of  a  mining  as- 
sociation, and  in  1826  published  "  Rough  Notes  taken  during  some 
Rapid  Journeys  across  the  Pampas  and  among  the  Andes,"  of  which 
Mr.  Darwin  praises  the  "spirit  and  accuracy."  In  1836  he  was  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor of  Canada. 

Kin;;.  PHILIP  PAKKEK.  (Pp.  72,  172.)  A  British  naval  com- 
mander; born  in  the  island  of  Norfolk,  South  Pacific  Ocean,  in 
1793.  In  1817-22  he  was  engaged  in  completing  the  survey  of  the 
west  coast  of  Australia.  In  1826  he  commanded  the  expedition  sent 
out  to  explore  the  coasts  of  South  America,  his  ship  being  the  Ad- 
venture. His  survey  and  that  of  the  Beagle  were  published  together. 
(See  Fitz  Roy,  above.) 

Kotzcbue,  OTTO  VON.  (Page  203.)  Born  at  Reval,  in  Russia, 
of  German  parents,  in  1787;  died  there  in  1846.  He  accompanied 
Admiral  von  Krusenstern  in  his  voyage  around  the  world  in  1803-6, 
and  in  1815-18,  in  the  ship  Rurick,  again  made  the  voyage  as  chief, 
accompanied  by  Chamisso  (see  above)  and  others.  Out  of  this  came 
his  "Voyage  of  Discovery  into  the  South  Sea  and  Behring's  Straits, 
for  the  purpose  of  Exploring  a  Northeast  Passage"  (London,  1821). 
He  made  a  third  and  last  voyage  in  1823-26,  of  which  he  gave  an 
account  in  his  "  New  Voyage  Around  the  World  "  (London,  1830). 

Pernety,  ANTOINE  JOSEPH.  (Page  80.)  Born  at  Roanne,  France, 
in  1716;  died  in  1801.  He  was  for  some  time  librarian  of  Frederic  the 
Great.  His  "Voyage  to  the  Falkland  Islands"  was  published  in  1769. 

Rosas,  JUAN  MANUEL  DE.  (Pp.  105, 106, 108.)  Born  in  La  Plata 
in  1793.  He  was  brought  up  a  Gaucho  on  the  plains,  and  became  of 


NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED.  215 

so  mucli  importance  that  in  1829  he  was  elected  Governor  of  the 
country  (Argentine  Confederation).  Mr.  Darwin  met  him  in  1833, 
on  the  Rio  Colorado,  when  he  was  conducting  in  person  the  war 
against  the  Indians.  He  says : 

"  General  Rosas  intimated  a  wish  to  see  me ;  a  circumstance  which 
I  was  afterward  very  glad  of.  He  is  a  man  of  an  extraordinary  char- 
acter, and  has  a  most  predominant  influence  in  the  country,  which  it 
seems  probable  he  will  use  to  its  prosperity  and  advancement.  ['  This 
prophecy  has  turned  out  miserably  wrong,'  adds  Mr.  Darwin,  in  1845.] 
He  is  said  to  be  the  owner  of  seventy-four  square  leagues  of  land,  and 
to  have  about  three  hundred  thousand  head  of  cattle.  His  estates  are 
admirably  managed,  and  are  far  more  productive  of  corn  than  those 
of  others.  He  first  gained  his  celebrity  by  his  laws  for  his  own  es- 
tancias,  and  by  disciplining  several  hundred  men  so  as  to  resist  with 
success  the  attacks  of  the  Indians.  There  are  many  stories  current 
about  the  rigid  manner  in  which  his  laws  were  enforced.  One  of 
these  was  that  no  man,  on  penalty  of  being  put  into  the  stocks,  should 
carry  his  knife  on  a  Sunday.  This  being  the  principal  day  for  gam- 
bling and  drinking,  many  quarrels  arose,  which,  from  the  general  man- 
ner of  fighting  with  the  knife,  often  proved  fatal.  One  Sunday  the 
Governor  came  in  great  form  to  pay  the  estancia  a  visit,  and  General 
Kosas,  in  his  hurry,  walked  out  to  receive  him,  with  his  knife  as  usual 
stuck  in  his  belt.  The  steward  touched  his  arm,  and  reminded  him 
of  the  law ;  upon  which,  turning  to  the  Governor,  he  said  he  was  ex- 
tremely sorry,  but  that  he  must  go  into  the  stocks,  and  that,  till  let 
out,  he  possessed  no  power,  even  in  his  own  house.  After  a  little 
time  the  steward  was  persuaded  to  open  the  stocks  and  to  let  him 
out ;  but  no  sooner  was  this  done  than  he  turned  to  the  steward  and 
said,  *  You  now  have  broken  the  laws,  so  you  must  take  my  place  in 
the  stocks.'  Such  actions  as  these  delighted  the  Gauchos,  who  all 
possess  high  notions  of  their  own  equality  and  dignity. 

"General  Rosas  is  also  a  perfect  horseman  —  an  accomplishment 
of  no  small  consequence  in  a  country  where  an  assembled  army 


216  NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED. 

elected  its  general  by  the  following  trial :  a  troop  of  unbroken  horses 
being  driven  into  a  corral,  were  let  out  through  a  gate -way  above 
which  was  a  crossbar;  it  was  agreed  whoever  should  drop  from  the 
bar  on  one  of  these  wild  animals,  as  it  rushed  out,  and  should  be  able, 
without  saddle  or  bridle,  not  only  to  ride  it,  but  also  to  bring  it  back 
to  the  door  of  the  corral,  should  be  their  general.  The  person  who 
succeeded  was  accordingly  elected,  and  doubtless  made  a  fit  general 
for  such  an  army.  This  extraordinary  feat  has  also  been  performed 
by  Rosas. 

"By  these  means,  and  by  conforming  to  the  dress  and  habits  of  the 
Gauchos,  he  has  obtained  an  unbounded  popularity  in  the  country, 
and,  in  consequence,  a  despotic  power.  I  was  assured  by  an  English 
merchant  that  a  man  who  had  murdered  another,  when  arrested  and 
questioned  concerning  his  motive,  answered, c  He  spoke  disrespectfully 
of  General  Rosas,  so  I  killed  him.'  At  the  end  of  a  week  the  mur- 
derer was  at  liberty.  This,  doubtless,  was  the  act  of  the  general's 
party,  and  not  of  the  general  himself.  [But  subsequent  events 
showed  that  it  might  well  have  been  the  general's  act.] 

"In  conversation  he  is  enthusiastic,  sensible,  and  very  grave.  His 
gravity  is  carried  to  a  high  pitch.  I  heard  one  of  his  mad  buffoons 
(for  he  keeps  two,  like  the  barons  of  old)  relate  the  following  anec- 
dote :  '  I  wanted  very  much  to  hear  a  certain  piece  of  music,  so  I 
went  to  the  general  two  or  three  times  to  ask  him;  he  said  to  me, 
"  Go  about  your  business,  for  I  am  engaged."  I  went  a  second  time. 
He  said,  "  If  you  come  again  I  will  punish  you."  A  third  time  I 
asked,  and  he  laughed.  I  rushed  out  of  the  tent,  but  it  was  too  late. 
He  ordered  two  soldiers  to  catch  and  stake  me.  I  begged  by  all  the 
saints  in  heaven  he  would  let  me  off — but  it  would  not  do;  when 
the  general  laughs  he  spares  neither  madman  nor  sound.'  The  poor 
flighty  gentleman  looked  quite  dolorous  at  the  very  recollection  of 
the  staking.  This  is  a  very  severe  punishment :  four  posts  are  driven 
into  the  ground,  and  the  man  is  extended  by  his  arms  and  legs  hori- 
zontally, and  then  left  to  stretch  for  several  hours.  The  idea  is  evi- 


NAMES    OF  PERSONS  MENTIONED.  217 

dently  taken  from  the  usual  method  of  drying  hides.  My  interview 
passed  away  without  a  smile,  and  I  obtained  a  passport  and  order  for 
the  Government  post-horses,  and  this  he  gave  me  in  the  most  obliging 
and  ready  manner." 

In  1835  Rosas  made  himself  dictator,  and  a  more  terrible  ruler 
never  cursed  a  nation.  A  picture  of  life  at  the  capital,  while  this 
tyrant  was  feared  as  much  as  he  was  hated  and  flattered,  may  be 
found  in  the  interesting  work  called  "  Life  in  the  Argentine  Repub- 
lic in  the  Days  of  the  Tyrants,"  by  D.  F.  Sarmiento,  afterward  Pres- 
ident of  the  Republic,  which  was  translated  by  Mrs.  Horace  Mann, 
and  published  in  New  York  in  1868.  This  work  was  written  some 
years  before  the  downfall  of  the  dictator,  and  only  partly  relates  to 
him.  "  The  Reign  of  Rosas;  or,  South  American  Sketches,"-by  E.  C. 
Fernau,was  published  in  London  in  1877.  Rosas  was  defeated  in  bat- 
tle by  General  Urquiza  in  1852,  and  spent  the  remainder  of  his  days 
in  exile,  dying  in  England  in  March,  1877. 

Sturt5  CHARLES.  (Page  72.)  An  English  officer,  captain  of  the 

39th  Regiment ;  born ;  died  June  16th,  1869,  at  Cheltenham, 

England.  In  1828-31  he  explored  the  great  basin  of  the  Murray 
River  in  south-eastern  Australia,  of  which  the  Murrumbidgee  is  a 
tributary.  In  1844-46  he  penetrated  nearly  to  the  centre  of  the  con- 
tinent. Of  these  journeys  he  gave  an  account  in  "  Two  Expeditions 
into  the  Interior  of  Southern  Australia"  (London,  1833),  and  "Nar- 
rative of  an  Exploration  into  Central  Australia  "  (London,  1849). 

Symonds,  WILLIAM.  (Page  76.)  An  English  rear-admiral  and 
naval  architect ;  born  1782  ;  died  1856. 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


V  The  pronunciation  of  the  more  difficult  FOKKIGN  NAMES  is  indicated  in  parentheses  (a  as  in  fate ; 
f  as  in  equal;  I  as  iu  like;  o  as  in  tone;  oo  as  in  food).  When  not  indicated,  the  chief  thing  to  remem- 
ber is,  that  a  generally  sounds  as  in  father,  e  like  a  in  fate,  i  like  e  in  equal,  u  like  oo  in  food. 

Span.  =  Spanish  ;  Port.  =  Portuguese ;  Fr.  =  French ;  Ger.  =  German ;  Dan.  =  Danish ;  Eng.  = 
English. 

Atlantic  Ocean  once  at  eastern  foot  of  the 

Andes,  178. 

Atoll,  a  circular  coral  island,  198,  200. 
Australia,  the  great  island  continent  of  the 


A. 


ACACIA,  a  tree  browsed  on  by  lizards,  60. 

Aconca'gua,  one  of  the  highest  peaks  of  the 
Andes,  east  of  Valparaiso,  156. 

Acry'dium,  a  kind  of  grasshopper,  81. 

Adventure,  Captain  King's  ship,  in  his  survey 
of  Patagonia,  172,177,  214. 

Africa,  81,  126. 

Agouti  (pron.  ah-goo'ty),  a  rodent  of  the  Pam- 
pas, about  the  size  of  a  rabbit,  123,  124. 

Albatross,  197. 

Amblyrhyn'cus,  a  kind  of  lizard,  found  only 
in  the  Galapagos  Islands — the  name  means 
"  blunt-nosed  "—56,  58,  59,  78. 

America,  fossil-bearing  rocks  of,  181. 

Andes,  the  great  mountain  range  (Cordilleras) 
of  South  America,  156,  178  ;  snow  and  wa- 
ter supply,  194. 

Ant,  migrating,  83  ;  enclosing  prey,  84  ;  at- 
tacks an  obstacle,  84. 

Antti'co,  a  volcano  in  south-eastern  Chile,  188, 
190. 

Apire  (Span,  pron.,  ah-pe'ra),  a  name  given  to 
the  Chilian  miner,  130, 131. 

Apple-tree,  mode  of  propagating  in  Chiloe, 
products  in  Chile,  158. 

Aptenody'tes  demer'sa,  the  jackass  penguin, 
65. 

Arched  openings  resisting  earthquakes,  186. 

Arroyo  Tapes  (Span,  pron.,  ar-roy'o  tah-pdce'\ 
a  small  stream  ("Tapes  brook")  in  Uru- 
guay, 143. 


Southern  Hemisphere,  50, 165. 
Australian,  native,  50;  mimicry,  95;  arts,  103; 
capacity  inferior  to  that  of  Ftiegian,  104. 

B. 

BAHIA  (Span,  pron.,  bah-e'ah\  a  sea-port  of 
eastern  Brazil — the  word  means  "bay" — 
83. 

Bahia  Blanca  ("white  bay"),  on  the  south 
coast  of  the  Argentine  Confederation,  44, 
63,  71,  73,  74,  109,  111 ;  hibernation  of  an- 
imals, 195,  196. 

Balan'dra,  a  small  sloop,  144. 

Bananas,  162-164,  171 ;  Tahitian  mode  of 
cooking,  138. 

Banda  Oriental  (Span,  pron.,  ban'dah  or-e-en- 
tahl'\  also  known  as  Uruguay,  a  Spanish- 
American  republic  adjoining  Brazil  on  the 
south — the  name  means  "eastern  league" 
— 48,  71,  126  ;  trees  and  treelessness,  143 ; 
comparative  hilliness,  149 ;  fossil  remains, 
150. 

Beagle,  the  ship  commanded  by  Captain  Fitz 
Roy,  in  which  Mr.  Darwin  made  the  voyage 
round  the  world,  17, 172, 177,  213,  214. 

Beagle  Channel,  a  Y-shaped  arm  of  the  sea  on 
the  southern  coast  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  52, 
101,  102  ;  scenery,  151, 152, 175  ;  glaciers, 
153. 


220 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Beech-tree  overhanging  deep  water,  53,  151 ; 
large  size,  172. 

Behring's  Straits  (Dan.  pron.,  bd'ring\  sepa- 
rating Asia  and  North  America ;  it  is  about 
thirty-six  miles  broad,  31,  32. 

Bizcacha  (Span,  pron.,  bitk-kah'tchaK),  a  rab- 
bit-like animal,  prey  of  the  puma,  45  ;  home 
on  the  Pampas,  range,  food,  flesh  good,  col- 
lections about  its  burrow,  48. 

Blue-gum  tree,  16G. 

Bolas  ("balls"),  with  which  Gauchos  catch 
ostriches  and  cattle,  71,  121  ;  made  and 
used  by  Indians,  107,  108 ;  catch  Mr.  Dar- 
win's horse,  121. 

Bones  used  as  fuel,  124. 

Booby,  a  stupid  and  tarne  bird,  75. 

Boomerang,  an  Australian  missile,  104. 

Botafo'go  Bay,  in  the  Bay  of  Rio  de  Janeiro, 
39,  41. 

Bower  bird,  Australian,  49,  50. 

Brazil,  the  largest  country  in  South  America, 
settled  by  the  Portuguese,  112, 113 ;  fruit- 
bearing  trees,  164  ;  primeval  forests,  170. 

Bread-fruit,  163,  164. 

Buenos  Ay  res  (Span,  pron.,  boo-en'oce  ah'e- 
ress),  the  capital  of  the  Argentine  Confed- 
eration— the  name  means  "fine  air" — 33, 
48,  109,  126,  127,  144,  146;  plains,  182. 

Bullock  wagon  of  the  Pampas,  147,  148. 

C. 

CACIQUE  (Span,  pron.,  kath-e'kd\  an  Indian 

chief,  108. 
Cactus,  59  ;  food  of  lizards,  60 ;  of  tortoises, 

61 ;  on  the  Parana,  148 ;  in  Chile,  194. 
Callao  (Span,  pron.,  kal-yah'o),  port  of  Lima, 

159  ;  liability  to  earthquake  waves,  190. 
Camping  out,  on  the  Pampas,  123;  in  Tahiti, 

136. 

Cannibalism  of  Fuegians,  101,  175. 
Cape  Blanco,  on  the  east  coast  of  Patagonia — 

the  name  means  "white " — 44. 

,  also  a  cape  on  the  west  coast  of 

Northern  Africa,  81. 

Cape  de  Verd  Islands,  west  of  Northern  Afri- 
ca, in  the  Atlantic  Ocean — the  name  means 

"green"— 64,  81. 
Cape   Gregory,  in   Patagonia,  on    Magellan 

Strait,  104. 


Cape  Horn,  the  most  southern  point  in  South 
America,  on  the  last  island  of  the  Fuegian 
Archipelago,  so  named  in  1616  by  its  dis- 
coverer, Schouten,  in  honor  of  his  Dutcli 
birthplace  (Hoorn),  42. 

Cape  of  Good  Hope,  the  southern  extremity 
of  Africa,  165. 

Capi'bara,  or  capy'bara,  a  water-hog,  prey  of 
the  jaguar,  46,  145. 

Carbonate  of  lime,  a  substance  manufactured 
from  sea-water  by  shell-fish  and  coral  in- 
sects, 200. 

Carpacho  (Span,  pron.,  kar-patch'o),  an  ore- 
sack,  in  Mexico  called  tanate  (tah-nah'td), 
131. 

Carrion-buzzard,  76. 

Casara  (Span,  pron.,  kas-sah'ra),  "house- 
builder,"  or  oven-bird,  74. 

Casarita  (Span,  pron.,  kas-sah-re 'tah\  "little 
'house-builder, "makes  deep  holes  for  nests •, 
has  no  idea  of  thickness,  74. 

Castro,  the  capital  of  Chiloe,  153. 

Casts  of  trees;  remains  of  trunks  in  which 
the  vegetable  fibres  have  been  replaced  by 
tiny  particles  of  stone  without  altering  the 
shape,  181. 

Cat,  jaguar  scratches  like  a,  47. 

Caterpillars,  turning  them  into  butterflies  a 
heresy,  132. 

Charles  Island,  one  of  the  Galapagos  group, 
60,  78. 

Chatham  Island,  the  easternmost  of  the  Gala- 
pagos group,  61. 

Chile  (Span,  pron.,  tcht'la),  a  Spanish- Amer- 
ican republic  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  South 
America,  44,  45,  67,  109,  118,  129,  154;  a 
raised  coast,  159 ;  mountains,  178 ;  fossil 
shells  and  wood,  181  ;  barrenness  in  north, 
194. 

Chileno  (Span,  pron.,  tche-ld'no),  an  inhabi- 
tant of  Chile,  trap  for  condors,  68 ;  po- 
liteness, 128;  wonder  at  the  naturalist,  121); 
superstition  about  volcanoes,  188 ;  miners' 
improvidence,  129,  funeral  procession,  130, 
heavy  loads,  130,  endurance,  131. 

Chiloe  (Span,  pron.,  tche-lo-d'),  a  large  island 
south  of  Chile,  153  ;  abundant  apple-trees. 
158,  167;  prospect,  177;  earthquakes,  189, 
190. 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


221 


China  (Span,  pron.,  tchenah),  a  young  In- 
dian woman,  106. 

Choiseul  Sound  (Fr.  pron.,  shwah-zurl'\  on  the 
east  side  of  the  largest  of  the  Falkland  Isl- 
ands, 124. 

Cholechel  (Span,  pron.,  tcho-ld-tchel),  an  isl- 
and in  the  Rio  Negro,  La  Plata,  108. 

Chonos  Archipelago  (Span,  pron.,  tcho'noce), 
on  the  west  coast  of  Patagonia,  50 ;  earth- 
quake, 190. 

Chuzo  (Span,  pron.,  tchooth'o),  a  pike,  108. 

Cockroaches  surrounded  by  ants,  83. 

Cocoa-nut,  138,  163,  171,  198,  199;  opened 
and  stripped  by  crabs,  89. 

Cocos  Islands  (see  Keeling),  86,  etc. 

Colonia,  a  town  in  south-western  Uruguay, 
128. 

Combs  of  ladies  of  Buenos  Ayres,  127. 

Concepcion  (Span,  pron.,  kon-thepth-e-on'},  a 
town  near  the  west  coast  of  Chile,  destroy- 
ed by  earthquake,  184-1 86 ;  connection  with 
Juan  Fernandez,  188,  with  Chiloe,  189, 190. 

Conchalee  (in  the  Spanish  form,  Conchali),  a 
town  on  the  west  coast  of  Chile,  rainfall, 
193. 

Condor,  a  carrion  bird,  preys  on  the  guanaco, 
44 ;  on  goats  and  lambs,  68 ;  plunders  the 
puma,  45 ;  size  and  range,  66 ;  lives  on 
steep  cliffs,  roosts  on  trees,  egg-laying,  67 ; 
how  caught,  68 ;  poor  sense  of  smell,  69 ; 
sharp  sight,  mode  of  flying,  70. 

Conglomerate,  a  mass  of  rock  particles,  203. 

Copiapd,  a  town  of  northern  Chile,  fossil  shells 
and  wood,  181 ;  earthquake,  192  ;  rainfall, 
193 ;  irrigation,  194. 

Coquimbo  (Span,  pron.,  ko-kem'bo),  a  north- 
ern seaport  of  Chile,  earthquake,  191; 
rainfall,  193. 

Coral  reef  of  Tahiti,  163,  of  Keeling  Island, 
198;  resistance  to  breakers,  199. 

Coralline,  a  marine  plant,  174. 

Corcova'do  ("hunchback  "),  a  volcano  in  the 
southern  extremity  of  Chile,  177. 

Cordillera  (Span,  pron.,  kor-del-yer'ah\  a 
mountain  chain — in  the  foregoing  pages  gen- 
erally the  same  as  the  Andes — 45,  66,  67, 
105, 109,  159. 

Cormorant,  51 ;  playing  with  its  prey,  65  ;  de- 
pendent on  kelp,  175. 


Cornwall,  the  south-western  extremity  of  Eng- 
land, 129. 

Corral',  a  yard  or  enclosure,  111. 

Corrobery,  Australian  dancing- party,  138,  140 

Cotton,  184. 

Crab,  plunders  the  noddy's  nest,  75,  76 ;  on 
Keeling  Island,  lives  on  cocoa-nuts,  86-89, 
in  burrows,  89 ;  yields  oil,  strong  pincers, 
89;  found  in  kelp,  174. 

Cufre  (Span,  pron.,  kodfra),  a  post  in  Uru- 
guay, 149. 

Cuttle-fish,  means  of  hiding,  change  of  color, 
64 ;  walks  with  difficulty,  64 ;  inhabits  the 
kelp,  174. 

D. 

DARWIN,  Charles,  sketch  of  the  life  of,  17. 

Deer,  the  prey  of  the  purna,  45. 

Demivolt,  a  mode  of  raising  up  his  forelegs 
to  which  a  horse  is  trained,  119. 

Der  Freischiitz  (Ger.  pron.,  derr  frl'shets — 
nearly),  "the  free  -  shooter  "  —  name  of  an 
opera  by  the  German  composer  C.  M.  von 
Weber,  first  performed  in  1822 — 94. 

Dog,  shepherd -dog's  training,  37;  cowardly 
at  the  house,  brave  with  the  flock,  38 ;  drives 
off  condors,  68 ;  Fuegian  dog  not  eaten  till 
old  women  are,  101. 

Dove,  76-78. 

E. 

EARTHQUAKE,  of  February  20, 1835, 183-192 ; 
of  1751,  188;  of  1837,  190;  of  1822,  192; 
effect  on  land  and  sea,  183 ;  in  upheaving, 
184,  190;  moral  effect,  183,  186,  191,  192; 
relation  to  volcanic  eruptions,  188;  subter- 
ranean connections,  188,  189. 

Edwards,  Mr.,  an  English  resident  of  Co- 
quimbo in  1835,  191. 

Elephant,  fossil  remains  in  South  America,  31, 
32. 

El  famo'so  Corcova'do  (Span.),  "the  famous 
Hunchback" — called  "famous"  to  distin- 
guish it  from  other  mountains  having  the 
same  name,  as,  for  instance,  the  Corcovado 
in  the  vicinity  of  Rio — 177. 

Emu,  good  swimmer,  72 ;  male  hatches  the 
eggs,  74 ;  Emu  dance  among  Australian  ne- 
groes, 139. 


222 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


En  el  cainpo  (Span.)— "on  the  open  plain" 
—123. 

England,  magpies  in,  78  ;  wild  geese,  80 ;  cat- 
tle-keeping, 126 ;  probable  effect  of  an  earth- 
quake, 191. 

Entre  Rios  (Span,  pron.,  en'trd  re'oce),  a 
South  American  country  lying,  as  its  name 
signifies,  "between  rivers,  "namely,  the  Pa- 
rana and  the  Uruguay,  48. 

Eskimo,  compared  with  Fuegian,  103. 

Estancia  (Span,  pron.,  es-tanth'e-ah\  a  graz- 
ing farm,  estate,  plantation,  30,  34, 125. 

Estanciero  (Span,  pron.,  es-tanth-e-er  o~),  a 
planter,  115,  127. 

Eucalyp'tus,  a  species  of  Australian  tree,  blue- 
gum,  etc.,  166,  167. 

Europe,  fossil-bearing  rocks  of,  181. 

Eyre's  Sound,  west  coast  of  Patagonia,  177. 

F. 

FAGUS  betuloi'des,  a  kind  of  beech,  151. 

Falkland  Islands,  east  of  the  southern  end  of 
Patagonia,  65,  78-80, 124. 

Feast-days  and  idleness,  1 28  ;  extravagance, 
129. 

Finch,  60,  76 ;  tameness,  78. 

Fire  procured  by  Tahitians  and  Gauchos,  137. 

Fir-trees,  petrified,  178,  1 8 1 . 

Flying-fish,  food  of  noddy,  75,  78. 

Forests  in  the  tropics,  1 70 ;  petrified,  178, 181. 

Fossil  remains  in  the  arctic  regions,  31  ;  of  the 
Pampas,  149 ;  shells  and  wood  in  Chile,  181 . 

Fox,  78,  79. 

Fuegians  of  Good  Success  Bay,  93;  painted 
skins,  94,  10/3  ;  mimicry,  94 ;  shell  -  heaps, 
wigwams,  98 ;  on  the  south  coast,  naked- 
ness, 99  ;  food,  100 ;  famine,  blubber-eating, 
cannibalism,  101,  176;  signal -fires,  101; 
easy  perspiration,  102 ;  lowest  of  mankind, 
103;  of  superior  capacity  to  Australians, 
104 ;  dependence  on  kelp,  175. 

G. 

GALAPAGOS  Islands  (Span,  pron.,  gah-lah'- 
pah-goce),  west  of  Ecuador,  remarkable  for 
the  differences  between  their  animal  species 
and  those  of  the  main-land  ;  they  got  their 
name  from  the  great  number  of  "turtles" 
found  on  them,  50,  76,  79,  80. 


Gannet,  75. 

Gaucho  (Span,  pron.,  gah-oo'tcho\  a  general 
name  for  the  inhabitant  of  the  Pampas, 
"countryman,"  fierce  appearance,  116; 
meat  diet,  123  ;  opinion  of  jaguar  meat,  47 ; 
steals  Indian  offerings,  111  ;  forcing  a  horse 
to  swim,  29  ;  horsemanship,  117-119  ;  use 
of  lazo,  120;  of  bolas,  71, 121 ;  night  camp, 
123,  124  ;  mode  of  kindling  a  fire,  137. 

Geranium,  195. 

Glaciers,  in  Beagle  Channel,  1 52,  153 ;  on 
Mount  Sarmiento,  176 ;  in  Eyre's  Sound 
and  Gulf  of  Penas,  177. 

Goeree  Road  (Eng.  pron.,  go-re'},  a  roadstead 
on  the  south  coast  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  south 
of  Lennox  Island — "goeree"  means  in  Dutch 
"good  road"  or  " good  anchorage " — 151. 

Goitre,  a  diseased  swelling  of  the  neck,  128. 

Goldmines  of  Chile,  132. 

Good  Success  Bay,  in  the  south-eastern  ex- 
tremity of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  93. 

Goose,  upland,  tame,  79  ;  wild,  80. 

Granite  country  furnishes  clear  water,  145 ; 
not  favorable  to  trees,  172 ;  granite  blocks 
on  icebergs,  177. 

Grasshoppers  blown  out  to  sea,  81. 

Greenstone  carried  to  a  lime  coral-reef,  203. 

Guanaco  (Span,  pron.,  goo-ah-nah'ko),  or  wild 
llama,  the  South  American  camel,  41 : 
range,  42  ;  curiosity,  bold  when  tame,  good 
swimmer,  43 ;  drinks  salt-water,  travels  in 
straight  lines,  prey  of  puma  and  birds,  44, 
68 ;  skin  for  clothing,  93,  99,  105. 

Guasco,  a  town  of  northern  Chile,  rainfall. 
193. 

Guava,  164. 

Gulf  of  Penas  (Span,  pron.,  pan y ass),  west 
coast  of  Patagonia,  177. 

Gull,  51. 

II. 

HAWK,  78. 

Hay  un  gato  encerrado  aqui  (Span,  pron.,  ah'f 
oon  gah'to  en-ther-rah' do  ah-ke'} — "there 
is  a  cat  shut  up  here" — there  is  some  mys- 
tery about  it,  132. 

Hibernation,  passing  the  winter  in  a  torpid 
state,  195,  196. 

Horse,  good  swimmer,  29,  30  ;  mares  killed  for 
food  and  hides,  30,  used  to  tread  out  wheat, 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


223 


31 ;  fossil  horse  in  South  America,  31 ; 
horse  introduced  by  Europeans,  33 ;  feats 
of  training  in  Chile,  118,  119;  struggle 
with  lassoed  bullock,  120;  entangled  in 
bolas,  121. 

Hottentots,  inhabitants  of  South  Africa,  73. 

Huuchos  (Span,  pron.,  oo-ak' tchoce),  a  name 
given  to  unhatched  ostrich  eggs,  73. 

I. 

ICEBERGS  in  Eyre's  Sound,  177. 

Indian,  North  American,  95 ;  South  Ameri- 
can, 105;  fine-looking,  106;  work  of  men 
and  women,  manufacture  and  use  of  bolas, 
71,  107,  108 ;  silver  riding  gear,  horseman- 
ship, 108;  heroism,  following  a  trail,  109; 
tree  altar,  110 ;  ancient  remains  near  Lima, 
163. 

Indian  file,  single  file,  or  one  behind  another, 
139. 

Indian  Ocean,  197. 

Irrigation  in  Chile,  194,  195. 

Isle  of  France,  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  east  of 
Madagascar,  204. 

Itacaia(Port.  pron.,  e-tah-kah'-e-ah),  a  village 
in  Brazil,  east  of  Rio,  112. 

J. 

JACKASS  penguin,  65,  66. 

Jaguar,  or  American  tiger,  haunts  great  riv- 
ers, 46,  145 ;  prey,  attacks  man  in  vessels 
and  houses,  46  ;  mode  of  killing,  noisy  hab- 
its, tree-scratching,  flesh  eaten,  47. 

James  Island,  one  of  the  larger  of  the  Gala- 
pagos Islands,  58. 

Juan  Fernandez  (Span,  pron.,  hoo-an'  fer-nan'- 
deth),  an  island  west  of  Chile,  inhabited  by 
a  Scotch  solitary,  Alexander  Selkirk,  whose 
life  here  is  supposed  to  have  suggested  to 
Defoe  the  story  of  Robinson  Crusoe ;  con- 
nection with  Concepcion  shown  by  earth- 
quakes, 188. 

K. 

KAFFIRS,  of  South  Africa,  mimicry,  95. 
Kangaroo  dance  of  Australian  negroes,  140. 
Kauri  pine  (pronounced  kow'ry\  the  Dammara 

australis,  171. 
Keeling  (or  Co'cos)  Islands,  a  coral  group  in 


the  Indian  Ocean,  south-west  of  Sumatra, 

86,  197,  198,  200. 
Kelp,  172;   strength,  173;  great  length,  use 

as  a  breakwater,  swarming  with  animal  life, 

174,  175. 
Kerguelen   Land  (Eng.  pron.,  kery'-e-len), 

an  island  in  the  southern  part  of  the  Indian 

Ocean,  174. 
King  George's  Sound,  in  the  south-western 

part  of  Australia,  138  ;  natives,  138. 


LAGOON  Islands,  197-204 ;  mode  of  forma- 
tion, 204. 

Land,  rising  and  sinking  of,  1 78,  181 , 190,  204. 

La  Plata  (Span,  pron.,  lah  plah'tah\  the  old 
name  of  the  present  Spanish -American 
Argentine  Republic  or  Confederation,  the 
second  largest  country,  after  Brazil,  in  South 
America;  it  is  also  the  name  of  the  riv- 
er and  estuary  into  which  flow  the  Pa- 
rana, Uruguay,  and  other  great  rivers  (see 
Plata) ;  for  this  whole  river  system  it  is  oc- 
casionally used  in  the  head-lines  of  the  fore- 
going pages,  45,  81, 118,  129,  146  ;  flatness, 
148. 

La  Platan  medical  superstitions,  124. 

Las  Minas  (Span,  pron.,  lass  me'nass),  a  town 
in  the  southern  part  of  Uruguay — the  name 
means  "the  mines" — 116,  126,  143. 

Las  Vacas  (Span,  pron.,  lass  vah'kass),  a 
town  in  Uruguay— the  name  means  "the 
cows  "—30. 

Lawson,  Mr.,  an  English  vice-governor  of  the 
Ecuadorian  penal  colony  in  the  Galapagos 
Islands,  60. 

Lazo  (Span,  pron.,  lath'o),  a  long  slip-noose, 
120,  121,  123. 

Lichen,  181,  194. 

Liesk,  Mr.,  an  English  resident  of  Keeling 
Island,  formerly  a  ship's-mate,  89. 

Lima  (Span,  pron.,  le'mah),  the  capital  of 
Peru,  70,  159,  161,  190;  Indian  remains, 
163. 

Lizard,  of  the  Galapagos,  56 ;  dislike  to  wa- 
ter, 57;  burrow -making,  58;  cowardice, 
59 ;  not  feared  by  birds,  food,  60 ;  com- 
mon lizard,  surrounded  by  ants,  83;  hiber- 
nation, 195,  196. 


224 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Llama  (Span,  pron.,  1-yah'maK),  the  South 
American  camel  (see  Guanaco),  41,  etc. 

Locust,  bred  in  deserts,  81 ;  swarm  like  a  cloud, 
81 ;  speed  of  flight,  height  from  ground, 
noise,  82  ;  driven  off  by  cottagers,  83. 

London,  the  chief  city  of  England,  74. 

Low,  Captain,  a  sealing-master  in  Patagonian 
waters,  101.  105. 

Luxan  or  Lujan  (Span,  pron.,  loo-hahn"),  a 
town  on  the  western  border  of  the  Argen- 
tine Republic,  81. 

Lyco'sa,  a  kind  of  spider,  84. 

M. 

MAOAHE  (Port,  pron.,  mah-kah-a),  a  river  in 
south-eastern  Brazil,  north  of  Cape  Frio,  11 3. 

Macrocys'tis  pyri'fera  (kelp),  ]  72. 

Madrina  (Span,  pron.,  mah-drenali),  the  bell- 
mule  (or  bell-leader)  of  a  troop  of  mules, 
33,  34. 

Magellan  Strait,  separating  Patagonia  and 
the  island  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  33,  66,  93, 
182. 

Magpie,  78. 

Maldonado  (Span,  pron.,  mal-do-nah'do\  a 
seaport  town  of  Uruguay,  63,  125. 

Mango,  171. 

Mares  (see  Horse). 

Mastodon,  an  extinct  animal  resembling  the  el- 
ephant, fossil  remains  in  South  America,  31. 

Mate  (Span,  pron.,  mah'ta),  a  South  Ameri- 
can shrub  used  for  tea,  110. 

Mayor -domo  (Span,  pron.,  mah-jor-dom'o),  a 
superintendent,  184,  185. 

Mazeppa,  a  Pole,  born  1644,  died  1709,  was, 
for  a  punishment,  bound  to  a  wild  horse's 
back,  which  was  then  set  loose,  109. 

Meat  diet  of  Gauchos,  123;  of  Chilian  miners, 
131. 

Mendoza  (Span,  pron.,  men-do' -thah),  a  west- 
ern town  and  province  of  the  Argentine  Re- 
public, 81,  147  ;  plains,  182. 

Mercedes  (Span,  pron.,  rner-thd' dace\  a  town 
in  western  Uruguay,  126,  128. 

Mimosa  tree,  148. 

Miners  of  Chile,  129-132. 

Misericor'dia(Span.) — "mercy,"  "have  mer- 
cy"—186. 

Mocking-thrush,  76  ;  tameness,  77. 


Monkey,  with  prehensile  tail,  38  ;  bearded,  4 1 . 

Montevideo  (Span,  pron.,  mon^-td-ve-dd'o),  the 
capital  of  Uruguay — the  name  means  "pros- 
pect hill" — 29  ;  hibernation  of  animals,  195. 

Moresby,  Captain,  89. 

Mosquitoes,  145. 

Mountains  of  Tierra  del  Fuego,  175,  176. 

Mount  Sarmiento,  in  Tierra  del  Fuego,  176. 

Mule,  knows  its  leader,  follows  a  scent,  33; 
endurance,  superior  to  its  parents,  34. 

Murrumbidgee  River,  in  New  South  Wales, 
Australia,  a  tributary  of  the  Murray  River, 
72. 

N. 

NEGRO  lieutenant  under  Rosas,  111;  negro 
woman's  heroism,  112;  a  degraded  slave, 
113;  cruel  treatment  of  slaves,  113-116; 
negress  with  a  goitre,  128. 

New  South  Wales,  an  eastern  division  of  Aus- 
tralia, 165;  peculiar  trees,  165-167. 

New  Zealand,  a  group  of  islands  in  the  South 
Pacific  Ocean,  belonging  to  Great  Britain, 
171. 

Noddy,  a  stupid  and  tame  bird,  75. 

North  America,  some  of  its  animals  derived 
from  Asia,  31,  32. 

Niagara,  the  most  famous  falls  in  the  United 
States,  176. 

No  se  (Span,  pron.,  no  so) — "I  don't  know" — 
109. 

O. 

OCEAN  bed  raised  into  mountains,  181;  into 
plains,  182;  ocean  prospect  tedious,  196; 
ocean  vastness,  197. 

Octo'pus,  the  cuttle-fish,  so  called  from  its 
"  eight  feet "  or  arms,  64. 

Olive,  143, 157. 

Orange-tree,  157,  162,  163,  164,  171. 

Os.orno,  a  volcano  in  the  southern  part  of  Chile, 
177. 

Ostrich,  range,  food,  how  caught,  71,  72 : 
good  swimmer,  72 ;  cock-bird  larger,  note, 
sits  on  the  nest,  73 ;  attacks  man,  num- 
bers and  weight  of  eggs,  73  ;  prey  of  puma, 
45. 

Otter  (see  Sea-otter). 

Owl,  78,  80. 

Ox-cart  of  the  Pampas,  147,  148, 

Ox  knows  its  own  troop,  34. 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


225 


P. 

PACIFIC  Ocean,  vastness,  197 ;  lagoon  isl- 
ands, 203. 

Palm,  U3,  164,  171,  200. 

Pampas,  South  American  plains  or  prairies, 
home  of  the  bizcacha,  48 ;  Indian  inhabi- 
tants, 105 ;  Gaucho,  120,  123;  unfavorable 
to  growth  of  trees,  144  ;  not  absolutely  flat, 
148;  fossil  remains,  149;  mud  formation,  183. 

Pan  de  Azucar  (Span.  pron.,pahn  da  ath-oo- 
kar) — "sugar-loaf" — a  prominent  landmark 
on  the  south  coast  of  Uruguay,  143. 

Parana  (Span,  pron.,  pah-rah-nah'),  one  of  the 
chief  tributaries  of  the  river  Plate,  46,  48, 
135;  broad,  147;  full  of  islands,  144;  mud- 
dy,  a  neglected  highway,  145. 

Paris,  the  chief  city  of  France,  177. 

Parrot,  41. 

Patagonia,  the  southernmost  country  of  South 
America,  so  named  by  Magellan  on  ac- 
count of  the  supposed  "big  feet  "  (patagon) 
of  the  native  inhabitants,  41,  43,  45,  47,  71, 
72;  impressive  plains,  150,  182. 

Patagonian,  like  some  of  the  Fuegians,  93 ; 
like  northern  Indians,  105  ;  height,  painted 
skin,  behavior  at  table,  stock  of  horses,  105. 

Peach-trees  used  for  firewood,  143. 

Peat  in  Tierra  del  Fuego,  151. 

Penguin,  noise,  53 ;  bravery,  66. 

Pepsis,  a  kind  of  wasp,  84. 

Pernambuco  (Port,  pron.,  perr-nam-boo' fco), 
a  seaport  of  Eastern  Brazil,  113. 

Peru  (Span.  pron.,^a-roo'),  a  Spanish-Ameri- 
can republic  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  South 
America,  118. 

Petrel,  197. 

Petrified  trees,  178,  181. 

Phosphorescent  sea,  53,  54. 

Pineapple,  163. 

Plata  (Span,  pron.,  plah'tah),  the  Plate  river 
and  estuary,  separating  Uruguay  and  the 
Argentine  Confederation  —  the  Spanish 
word,  like  Argentine  and  our  English  plate, 
means  "silver" — 29,  46,  53,  145;  a  muddy 
expanse,  146,  183. 

Plaza  (Span,  pron.,  plath'-afi),  the  Spanish 
name  for  an  open  square  in  the  heart  of  a 
town — in  Italian,  piazza  (pe-at'sa),  153. 


Point  Venus,  Tahiti — so  called  because  Cap- 
tain Cook  observed  there  the  transit  of  the 
planet  Venus,  June  3, 1769—136. 

Polyp,  the  coral  insect,  200,  203. 

Poncho  (Span,  pron.,  pon'tcho),  a  blanket  with 
a  hole  in  the  middle,  through  which  the 
wearer  puts  his  head,  101. 

Ponsonby  Sound,  between  Hoste  and  Nava- 
rin  Islands,  which  form  the  south  coast  of 
Beagle  Channel,  102,  175. 

Poplar,  143. 

Porphyry,  a  hard  rock,  often  of  a  green  color, 
199. 

Porpoise,  mode  of  swimming,  outstrips  a  ship, 
53 ;  feeds  among  the  kelp,  175. 

Port  Famine,  in  Patagonia,  on  the  Strait  of 
Magellan,  at  the  point  where  the  letter  a  of 
Famine  is  printed  on  the  map,  151,  172. 

Portillo  Pass  (Span,  pron., por-tel'yo),  a  route 
over  the  Andes  between  Chile  and  the  Ar- 
gentine Republic — the  name  means  a  "gap" 
or  "gate" — 33. 

Port  Valdes  (Span,  pron.,  val-ddce'),  a  station 
on  the  east  coast  of  Patagonia,  44,  72. 

Posta,  a  post-station,  109,  111. 

Promethean  matches,  consisting  of  a  roll  of 
paper  treated  with  sugar  and  chlorate  of 
potash,  and  a  small  cell  containing  sulphuric 
acid — when  the  cell  was  broken  the  acid  set 
fire  to  the  composition — 125. 

Pulperia  (Span,  pron., pool-per-e'ah),  a  drink- 
ing-shop,  116. 

Puma,  or  South  American  lion,  range  and 
prey,  44,  45  ;  mode  of  killing,  45 ;  drives 
off  condor,  45,  68 ;  flesh  like  veal,  45,  47. 

Pyramids  of  Egypt,  204. 

Q- 

QUE  cosa  (Span,  pron.,  kay  kos'sah) — "what 
an  idea"— 115. 

Quillota  (Span,  pron.,  kel-yo'tah\  a  town  of 
Chile,  south-east  of  Valparaiso,  157,  159. 

Quinquina  (Span,  pron.,  ke-re-ke  nah),  an  isl- 
and on  the  west  coast  of  Chile,  affected  by 
earthquake,  184,  185. 

R. 


RADVCK  Archipelago,  lagoon  islands  in  the 
North  Pacific,  near  the  equator,  203. 


15 


226 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Rain,  scanty  fall  in  northern  Chile,  193 ;  effect 
on  vegetation,  193,  194. 

Rancho  (Span,  pron.,  ran'tcho),  a  half-way 
house,  111. 

Rastro,  a  track  or  trail,  109, 110. 

Recado  (Span,  pron.,  rd-kah'do),  saddle  of  the 
Pampas,  120,  128. 

Renous,  a  German  naturalist  suspected  of 
heresy,  132. 

Rio  Colorado  (Span,  pron.,  re'o  ko-lor-ah' do), 
a  river  of  the  Argentine  Confederation — the 
name  means  "red  river"  —  30,  105,  110, 
111,  182. 

Rio  de  Janeiro  (Port,  pron.,  re'o  da  zhah-nd'e- 
ro\  or  simply  Rio,  the  capital  of  Brazil,  and 
bay  of  the  same  name,  which  means  "river 
of  January, "38,  53,  84, 113,  114. 

Rio  Negro  (Span,  pron.,  re'o  nd'gro'),  a  river 
formerly  the  southern  boundary  of  the  Ar- 
gentine Republic — the  name  means  "black 
river"— 105, 110. 

also,  a  river  of  Uruguay,  126. 

Rosario  (Span,  pron.,  ros-sar'e-o\  a  La  Platan 
town  on  the  Parana  —  the  name  means  a 
"rosary"— 145, 147, 148. 

Ross,  Captain,  an  English  colonist  of  Keeling 
Island,  203. 

Rouse,  Mr.,  an  English  consul  at  Concepcion 
in  1835, 186, 188. 

Ruminants,  animals  that  chew  again  what 
they  have  swallowed,  as  cattle  do.  31,  32. 

S. 

ST.  ELMO'S  light,  53. 

St.  Paul's  Rocks,  islands  in  the  middle  of  the 
Atlantic,  nearly  on  the  equator,  75. 

Saladillo  (Span,  pron.,  sah-lah-dil'lyo'),  the 
"  little  Salado  "  (or  [hide]  salting  stream),  a 
small  western  tributary  of  the  Parana,  147. 

Salina  (Span,  pron.,  sah-lenah),  a  salt-marsh, 
44. 

Salinas,  a  salt-marsh  region  near  Bahia  Blan- 
ca,  109. 

San  Bias  Bay,  the  southernmost  in  the  Ar- 
gentine Republic,  72. 

San  Felipe  (Span.  pron.,/a7e>a) — "St.  Phil- 
ip " — an  inland  town  of  Chile,  159. 

San  Fernando,  an  inland  town  of  Central 
Chile,  132,  159. 


San  Luis,  a  town  in  the  central  part  of  the 
Argentine  Republic,  182. 

San  Nicolas,  a  La  Platan  town  on  the  Pa- 
rana, 145,  147, 148. 

Santa  Cruz  (Span,  pron.,  krooth),  a  river  of 
Patagonia — the  name  means  "holy  cross" 
—42,  44,  67,  72. 

also,  the  chief  town  in  the  island 


ofTeneriffe,  155, 156. 

Santa  Fe  (Span,  pron.,  fa),  a  town  in  the  Ar- 
gentine  Confederation  —  the  name   means 

"  holy  faith  "—46, 124, 146 ;  plains,  149. 
Santa  Lucia  (Span,  pron.,  loo-the'aK),  a  river 

of  Uruguay,  29. 
Savage  man,  92 ;  mimicry,  95  ;   keen  senses, 

98. 

Scurvy-grass,  98. 

Sea-bed  become  dry  land,  181,  182. 
Sea-eggs,  100,  174. 
Seal,  piggish  habits,  50 ;   noise,  53 ;  skin  for 

wigwam  covers,  99  ;  flesh  for  food,  100. 
Sea -otter,  52;    plays  with  fish,  65;    skin  for 

clothing,  99. 

Shell-heaps  of  Fuegians,  98. 
Shingle,  sea-shore  gravel,  182. 
Shropshire,  also  called  Salop,  a  western  coun- 

tv  of  England,  where  Mr.  Darwin  was  born, 

85. 
Siberia,  the  northernmost  country  of  Asia,  31, 

32. 

Silex,  flint,  181. 
Snails  hibernating,  196. 
Snow-line  in  Tierra  del  Fuego,  151,  176. 
South  Africa,  ostriches   in,  73 ;  Kaffirs,  95 ; 

root-eating  tribes,  103. 
South  America,  extinction   of  the  horse  in, 

31 ;   range  of  the  condor  in,  66. 
South  Sea  Islanders,  Pacific  Ocean,  103. 
Spain,  the  south-western  peninsula  of  Europe, 

125. 
Spaniard,  cruelty  to  slaves  and  animals,  115 ; 

ignorance  of  natural  history,  132;   prefers 

traitors  to  cowards,  135. 
Spider,  surrounded  by  ants,  83 ;   killed  by  a 

wasp,  84 ;  kills  a  wasp,  85;  hibernation,  195, 

196. 

Star-fish,  174,  175. 
Strata,  layers,  181. 
Stru'thio  rhea,  the  American  ostrich,  71. 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


227 


Sugar-cane,  163. 

Sumatra,  a  large  island  on  the  equator,  south 

of  Asia,  198. 

Superstition  about  earthquakes,  1 88,  1 90. 
Swan,  black-necked,  52,  80. 
Sweet-potato,  163. 

T. 

TAHITI,  the  principal  one  of  the  Society  Isl- 
ands in  the  South  Pacific,  135 ;  valley  of 
Tia-auru,  136;  coral  reef,  vegetable  pro- 
ducts, 163. 

Tahitian,  mildness,  tattooed,  133 ;  women  in- 
ferior, 136  ;  fire-making,  137 ;  cooking,  138. 

Talcahuano  (Span,  pron.,  tal-kah-hwah'no),  a 
seaport  of  Chile,  destroyed  by  earthquake, 
184,  185,  187,  188,  192;  liability  to  great 
waves,  190. 

Tapulquen  (Span,  pron.,  tah-pool-kdn'\  a  town 
in  the  south-eastern  part  of  the  Argentine 
Republic,  123. 

Tattooing  in  Tahiti,  135,  136. 

Teneriffe,  the  largest  of  the  Canary  Islands, 
155,  156. 

Tern,  51,  75. 

Tia-auru,  a  valley  of  Tahiti,  136. 

Tierra  del  Fuego  (Span,  pron.,  te-er'ra  del 
foo-ago\  a  large  island  south  of  Patagonia, 
called  "land  of  fire"  by  Magellan  on  ac- 
count of  the  native  bonfires  on  the  coast. 
43,  45,  53,  79,  98,  101,  155 ;  mountainous 
and  peaty,  151 ;  full  of  bays  and  inlets,  159 ; 
forests,  170,  172;  mountains  and  glaciers, 
175,  176. 

Tides,  affected  by  earthquakes,  183-185,  187; 
on  shallow  coasts,  190. 

Toad,  black  with  red  belly,  in  hot  desert,  un- 
able to  swim,  63  ;  hibernation,  196. 

Tortoise,  of  Galapagos  Islands,  vast  numbers 
and  size,  60 ;  difference  between  the  sexes, 
food,  long  journeys  for  drink,  61,  62  ;  pow- 
er to  go  without  water,  rate  of  travel,  egg- 
laying,  old  age,  deafness,  62 ;  carrying  a 
man,  63. 

Toucan,  41. 

Trade-wind,  a  steady  wind  blowing  from  north- 
east or  south-east  toward  the  equator,  199. 

Trafalgar',  a  cape  on  the  south-western  coast 
of  Spain,  off  which  the  British  fleet  under 


Nelson  defeated  the  French  and  Spanish, 

Oct.  21, 1805,  136. 
Tree-fern,  171. 
Trees  of  Australia,  165-167 ;  of  the  Tropics, 

170;  petrified,  178, 181. 
Tropilla   (Span,  pron.,   tro-pel'yah\  a   little 

troop,  34. 
Turkey-buzzard,  companion  of  seals,  50;  feeds 

on  young  tortoises,  62. 
Turtle-dove,  tameness,'  77,  78. 
Tyrant  fly-catcher,  76. 

U. 

URUGUAY  (Span,  pron.,  oo-roo-gwah'e),  a 
country  of  South  America  (see  Banda  Ori- 
ental), 48,  etc. ;  also  the  name  of  the  river 
which  forms  its  western  boundary,  47r48; 
clearness,  145. 

Uruguayan,  astonishment  at  compass  and 
matches,  ignorance  of  geography,  125- 
127;  wonder  at  face -washing  and  beard- 
growing,  126  ;  indolence,  requirements  of 
legislative  representatives,  128. 

Uspallata  range  and  pass  (Span,  pron.,  oos- 
pal-yah' taK),  on  the  western  border  of  the 
Argentine  Confederation,  178. 

V. 

VALDIVIA,  a  southern  port  of  Chile,  158,  167; 
earthquake  of  1835, 183,  189;  of  1837, 190. 

Valparaiso  (Span,  pron,,  val-par-ah-eso\  the 
principal  seaport  of  Chile — the  name  means 
"paradise  valley"  —  69,154;  immunity 
from  earthquake  waves,  190;  earthquake 
of  1822,  192;  rainfall,  193. 

Villarica  (Span,  pron.,  vel-yah-re  kah},  a  vol- 
cano in  the  south-eastern  part  of  Chile,  189. 

Volcano  of  Aconcagua,  156  ;  Osorno,  Corco- 
vado,  177;  Antuco,  188,  190;  Villarica, 
189  ;  volcanic  soil  in  western  La  Plata,  178. 

W. 

WAIMATE,  a  town  in  the  north-western  part 
of  New  Zealand,  on  New  Ulster  Island,  171. 

Walleechu,  an  Indian  name  for  a  sacred  tree 
in  the  southern  part  of  the  Argentine  He- 
public,  110,  111,  122. 

Wasp,  hunts  down  a  spider,  84;  caught  by 
spider,  85. 


228 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Water-hog  (see  Capibara). 

West  Indies,  the  archipelago  between  North 
and  South  America — Columbus's  first  dis- 
covery— 32. 

Whale,  spermaceti,  sporting,  53 ;  blubber  eat- 
en by  Fuegians,  100,  101. 

White  Cockatoo,  168. 

White  Cockatoo  men,  an  Australian  tribe, 
138. 

Wild  arum,  138. 

Wild  celery,  98. 

Wild  pease,  195. 

Willows,  143. 


Winter 's-bark,  172. 

Wollaston  Island,  south  of  Tierra  del  Fnego,  99. 

Wood  sorrel,  195. 

Wren,  76. 

Y. 
YAM,  163. 

Yammerschooner,  a  begging  word  of  the  Fu- 
egians, 102. 

Yaquil  (Span.  pron^jah-kel'^  a  gold-mining 
town  of  Chile,  just  west  of  San  Fernando, 
132. 

Yerba  (Span,  pron.,  jer'-bah),  a  South  Ameri- 
can tea,  also  called  mate,  110,  184. 


Ml 


120  140 


EASTERN  HEMISPHERE. 


WESTERN  HEMISPHERE. 


CHILE,  ARGENTINE  CONFEDERATION,  URUGUAY. 


t  Str,,kr,.  K.  T. 


PATAGONIA,  TIERRA  DEL  FUEGO. 


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